Frozen Food Manufacturer Expands Production in Toluca plant
TOLUCA, Ill (WMBD) — Dozens of potstickers zoomed by on a wide conveyor belt at a Toluca frozen food plant on Tuesday as the owners looked with pride.
It's a special moment as Ajinomoto Foods North America cut the ribbon to their third new production line.
'We're celebrating the startup of our third manufacturing line over the last five years,' said Dave Gardner, the chief supply chain officer for the company.
Ajinomoto is a leader in specialty frozen food production, with operations across North America, including one in this Marshall County city. Ajinomoto makes such brands as Ling Ling, Tai Pei and José Olé to name a few.
Ajinomoto's website says that, ''Eat Well. Live Well.' has been our North Star for over 100 years. It guides us to make the most nutritious and delicious foods to satisfy the widest array of preferences and consumers.'
This new production line is focused on doing just that.
'We produce Asian dumplings, or we call them potstickers. And so, this is a new investment to expand our production for that category,' Gardner said.
Ajinomoto's new investment isn't just supporting the company, but the surrounding city of Toluca and its community.
'When you make a significant investment, not only is it helpful to the business…' said Alex Stoeger, the company's senior director of operations. 'But it's helpful to the employees, and certainly it's helpful to the community, especially these small communities. They thrive on the success of the factory for their own local economy.'
Toluca is the home for this manufacturing plant, but also home to many of the employees who work for Ajinomoto.
'Toluca is a really important part of our network. The Toluca area has a great, hardworking, committed workforce. And so, it's a plant that's very successful because of the quality of the team that we're able to produce here,' said Gardner.
And with one investment, hopefully more comes with it, at least that is what the company hopes for the future.
'For every investment. We say if we do this right, more will come. And so here we are again. The Toluca factory has knocked this out of the park. They've done it right. Is there more to come? Maybe,' Stoeger said.
You can find Ajinomoto's products at any local retailer, including Costco, Kroger and many other retailers.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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