ABC 12 – WJRT – Flint, MIMichigan Sugar making sweet investment

Michigan Sugar making sweet investment

(12/21/11) - A Bay County company is making a sweet investment. Company-wide, Michigan Sugar is investing more than $16 million in its facilities.

"We're investing in our factories, making them more efficient, energy efficient, increasing some capacities. And that will really set us well for many years to come," said Ray VanDriessche, the company's community and government relations director.

Facilities in Caro and Breckenridge will get some upgrades, but the bulk of the work will happen at the grower-owner cooperative's main processing plant in Monitor Township.

A total of $13.5 million will be spent there to make the plant more efficient. $3.8 million will be spent on the sugar beet slicing station according to VanDriessche. "Completely upgrading our slicing station where we slice our beets up into what we call a cassette, which is then where we extract the sugar from."

The beet slicing operation is one of four areas in the plant slated for major upgrades next year.

Another $4.7 million investment will go to replace some of the machines that squeeze juice from the beets.

An additional $4 million will be spent on a new steam dryer.

Monitor Charter Township leaders are thrilled.

"They're a big portion of our tax revenue in Monitor Township. They're the biggest industry that Monitor Township has," said Gary Brandt, the township's supervisor. That's why the township approved a 12-year tax break for Michigan Sugar.

"All this new work that they're doing makes more jobs for the people in the area. And this is why we are trying to help them, and they help us," Brand added.

VanDriessche says there likely will be new jobs after the company invests $1 million to make more powdered and brown sugar, the fourth area of investment.

Those jobs, VanDriessche believes, will help the whole community. "And that allows a lot of employees to go out and buy. And that money and dollar turns over and over and over again."

Michigan Sugar will begin the projects when the slicing season ends. Right now that is slated for the beginning of March 2012.