Plant of the Year
FOOD ENGINEERING Names 2026 Plant of the Year
CJ Schwan's has opened a 400,000-sq.-ft. pizza manufacturing facility in Salina, Kansas. The facility, along with its 140,000-sq.-ft. distribution center, has been named FOOD ENGINEERING's 2026 Plant of the Year.
CJ Schwan's 140,000-sq.-ft. distribution center serves as a hub for not only all Salina operations but also as a key logistical central point for all CJ Schwan’s manufacturing operations across the country.
Birmingham, Michigan – CJ Schwan’s frozen pizza manufacturing and distribution facility in Salina, Kansas has been named FOOD ENGINEERING’s 2026 Plant of the Year.
The company, which produces pizzas under the Red Baron, Tony’s, Freschetta and Big Daddy’s brands, decided in 2018 to expand production capacity at the Salina facility to boost brand growth and support frozen pizza demand.
“We are honored to receive the Plant of the Year Award for our Salina facility,” says Mark Carter, executive vice president and chief supply chain officer for CJ Schwan’s. “This recognition reflects the incredible vision and dedication of our team, as well as our commitment to innovation and meeting the growing demand for high-quality frozen pizza. The Salina expansion represents our belief in building the ‘factory of the future,’ and we’re proud to see that effort celebrated.”
CJ Schwan’s partnered with Burns & McDonnell to design and build a 400,000-sq.-ft. greenfield pizza manufacturing facility and 140,000-sq.-ft., fully automated distribution center with independent utility systems. When combined with current operations, this project brought the total area of the CJ Schwan’s site in Salina to more than 1 million sq. ft. of operating space.
The newly built production facility now produces more than 100 million pizzas annually.
In addition to the scale of the project, judges were impressed by several factors, including:
- A major land development project to reroute a 200-acre watershed
- Significant manufacturing automation implementation, including an end-to-end supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system
- Advanced refrigeration and temperature regulation across the manufacturing facility and distribution center
- Sustainability initiatives including a 20-year agreement to purchase energy from a local wind farm
“Over the years, we’ve visited many top-tier production facilities, so we know what true innovation in manufacturing, distribution and plant design looks like,” says Michael Leonard, FOOD ENGINEERING’s publisher. “The CJ Schwan’s facility truly represents the ‘factory of the future,’ and we’re proud to recognize the company’s vision and investment with the 2026 Plant of the Year Award.”
A full profile of the plant and its design will be published as FOOD ENGINEERING’s April cover story.
Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!
