Potato processor investing $415M in new production line at Idaho facility

Lamb Weston Holdings is investing $415 million in a new french fry processing line at its plant in American Falls, Idaho.

The new line will expand the facility’s production capacity to more than 350 million pounds of frozen french fries and other potato products per year, according to a news release from the company.

“We continue to be confident about the long-term health and growth of the global french fry market,” Tom Werner, president and CEO of Lamb Weston, said in the release. “This investment in American Falls complements our recently announced plans to construct a greenfield french fry processing facility in China, as well as capacity expansion in Russia by our European joint venture, Lamb-Weston/Meijer.

“Together, these investments will strengthen our global manufacturing network, and provide us added flexibility to meet demand growth and serve our customers around the world.”

The new line is expected to be completed by mid-2023, according to the release, and will create 130 jobs. The expansion will include additional modernization of the facility, built in 1961.

Founded in 1950, Lamb Weston is a global supplier of frozen potato, sweet potato, appetizer and vegetable products to restaurants and retailers.