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As its beloved Pepperidge Farm Goldfish crackers brand swims toward becoming a $1 billion business, Campbell Soup Co. unveiled plans to invest $160 million to meet consumer demand.

After upgrades are completed by the end of 2024 to its bakery in Richmond, Utah, output will increase by 50% to more than 5 million Goldfish per hour – or 1,500 tiny fish crackers every second – the Camden-based soup and snack maker said in a July 25 press release.

As part of the investment, Campbell will add more than 80 jobs, the company said, noting that it employs more than 400 people in the region across its bakery in Richmond and operations facility in Logan.

The expansion also includes the construction of an on-site flour mill that will be separately owned and operated by Utah Flour Milling LLC.

The mill – a partnership between PHM Brands’ Panhandle Milling, a Texas agricultural company, and Japanese flour milling enterprise Nippn Corp. – will be adjacent and connected to the bakery, helping to increase supply reliability, provide capacity for continued growth and improve efficiency, Campbell said. The mill will also reduce the site’s greenhouse gas emissions by eliminating 2,200-plus trucks per year transporting the flour from mill to bakery, according to the company.

Keep fishin’

The new line in Utah marks the third Goldfish capacity expansion in the last two years, following bakery upgrades in Lakeland, Fla., and Willard, Ohio.

In a statement, Chris Foley, executive vice president and president of Campbell Snacks, commented, “Goldfish is an iconic brand that is quickly approaching a billion-dollar business, and this investment demonstrates our commitment to the growth of our brands and the communities where we operate.”

Considered to be the “star of the snacks businesses” by Campbell CEO Mark Clouse, Goldfish has been a strong performer for the company. Campbell has also found success with recent innovations of its best-selling baked treat.

In an effort to attract adult snackers, Campbell partnered with McCormick & Co. in 2021 to launch Goldfish Frank’s RedHot crackers as a limited time offer. It then followed up with several other LTO flavor mashups, including Old Bay Seasoned Goldfish with McCormick and Pumpkin Spice Grahams with Dunkin’.

Earlier this year, Craig Slavtcheff, Campbell’s chief research and development and innovation officer, told NJBIZ, “All of these LTOs sold out very quickly, so there was good success in the market. And then even with our new platform under Goldfish, which is called Mega Bites, which is a larger Goldfish with much more cheese flavor, much more high impact flavor. We had a cheddar jalapeño, which is doing very well as part of that launch. So, using spice as a way in for older consumers, and even tweens and teenagers, has been a good use of the tool to help guide us for the culinary trends that are relevant for snacks.”