G&S Foods opens its Hanover snack manufacturing plant

Production under one roof

G&S Foods has opened a 348,344-square-foot snack manufacturing facility in Hanover, Pennsylvania. The co-packer and private label manufacturer is consolidating production, research and development, warehousing and administrative offices at the site. Its equipment can make extruded, baked and fried products, including pretzels, organic vegetable sticks and chocolate-covered pretzels. The operation accommodates single-batch trials and in-line packaging for commercial production runs.

New equipment alone cost $50 million; the total project investment was not disclosed. G&S Foods had 400 employees at the time of the June 2024 opening announcement. The company estimated that employment could reach 1,000 over the next few years. That figure remains a hiring forecast.

From Abbottstown to Hanover

The project was already under construction in March 2023. G&S Foods selected a site on Blettner Avenue in Hanover, with an opening provisionally scheduled for mid-2024. Daniel Morgan, president and chief executive officer, said the company planned to transfer its existing Abbottstown workforce to the new location. Further recruitment was intended to follow the opening.

The original construction plans included offices for sales, operations and finance alongside additional warehouse space. Board member Patricia A. Warehime linked the location choice to her family's longstanding connection with Hanover and Snyder's of Hanover. She described the availability of the Blettner Avenue site during the company's property search as particularly welcome. Morgan's proposed staff transfer and subsequent recruitment were plans announced during construction.

Company and packaging history

G&S Foods was established in York County, Pennsylvania, in 1996. Its 1999 acquisition of Tastysnack Quality Foods added enrobing capabilities to the business. The companies subsequently moved to Abbottstown.

In May 2018, MAW Acquisitions LP acquired G&S Foods/Tastysnack Quality Foods from Steve Garvick and Dale Spahr, working with Maryland-based SC&H Capital. The transaction's financial terms were not disclosed. Patricia A. Warehime established a board of managers to assist with growth strategy.

The business's product range at that time included pellet snacks, pita chips, snack mixes, popcorn, flavoured pretzels, cheese products, extruded snacks and enrobed products. Its packaging capabilities covered several formats:

• form-and-fill bags and pouch-style bags;
• bulk boxes and pallet display units;
• shippers and floor displays;
• tubs, containers and barrels.

The companies announced that the existing management and sales teams would remain in place following the 2018 sale. Garvick attributed the decision to sell to the fit between the buyers and the company's employees, customers and community. Warehime brought her family's experience in the snack business to the acquisition.