A company that builds temperature-controlled warehouses is building two new facilities in North Georgia, one in Gainesville and one in Cartersville.
Agile Cold Storage, which is based in Alpharetta, plans to invest more than $60 million in the projects, according to information released Thursday morning by Gov. Brian Kemp's office.
The facilities will support the state's poultry industry. While per capita chicken consumption has doubled since 1978, Georgia’s production has tripled, and three of four Georgia counties support facilities involved in poultry and egg production. In 2018, Georgia was the top broiler producing state in the U.S. with a $4.5 billion industry. Poultry is also one of the state’s top 10 exports, and the state export receipts for the segment totaled $990.6 million in 2019.
"It’s great to see Georgia-based companies reinvest in their home state and create opportunities for hardworking Georgians," said Kemp in a media statement. "Agile’s investment in the Peach State is a testament to Georgia’s dominance in the poultry industry and our top-notch logistics network, and I am grateful for their partnership as they ramp up operations in North Georgia."
In Gainesville, Agile will build a 150,000-square-foot facility at 3117 Athens Highway. The company plans to hire 100 employees for the Gainesville plant.
"Agile Cold Storage will be a welcome part of the Gainesville-Hall County business community," said Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce President Kit Dunlap. "Gainesville-Hall County has many food and pharmaceutical manufacturers that rely on cold-chain logistics, like Agile Cold Storage, to distribute their products to U.S. consumers and to export markets through the Port of Savannah."
In Cartersville, 70 workers will be hired to work at a 150,000-square-foot plant.
Positions at both the Gainesville and Cartersville facilities will include warehouse management, administration, clerical, forklift operators, maintenance and other general warehouse positions.
