Pepperidge Farm recently announced plans to invest in a new high capacity bread production line at its Lakeland, Fla., bakery. An addition will be constructed to house the new line, bringing the total area of the plant to 320,000 square feet.

The line will increase the plant’s production capacity by 31 million loaves annually, enabling Pepperidge Farm to keep pace with the rapidly growing demand for its premium fresh breads in the Southeast.

Pepperidge Farm is a leading provider of premium quality baked goods, cookies, crackers and frozen food products and is currently the No. 2 fresh bread brand in the United States.

The company expects to create 45 new jobs to help operate the new line when it is fully operational. This will bring the total employment at its Lakeland plant to 335. Construction of the plant addition and installation of the new bread line are expected to take about a year to complete with start-up anticipated for summer of 2008.

“With first-rate facilities and an outstanding group of employees, Pepperidge Farm Lakeland has been one of the company’s leading production sites since it opened in 1987,” said Gary Tarr, plant manager at the Pepperidge Farm Lakeland Plant. “This expansion, and the new jobs it will add, will only make us better.”

Pepperidge Farm was founded in Connecticut in 1937 and is now a nationwide business with 8 manufacturing facilities, almost 5,000 employees, 3,500 independent distributorships, and over $1 billion in sales. Pepperidge Farm was acquired by Campbell Soup Co. in 1961.

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