Tandem Foods is pouring $42 million into a new production line in O'Hara Township, a move Governor Josh Shapiro announced this week that will create 83 new jobs while keeping 446 existing full-time positions in Allegheny County over the next three years. The nutritional snack food manufacturer chose to expand at its existing Pennsylvania hub rather than move the work to competing sites in California.
According to WPXI, Tandem Foods will lease an additional 79,000 square feet at 615 Alpha Drive in O'Hara Township, where it will install a dedicated production line for cold-form bar manufacturing. The company already leases three facilities in the township and keeps its national corporate headquarters there, producing cold-slab bars and molded chocolate items for consumer-packaged goods companies and entrepreneurial brands. Tandem Foods operates eight facilities across the country.
Tandem Foods CEO Michael Buick said the new cold-form line represents the single largest financial investment in the company's 40-year history, according to PennWatch. Buick said the investment responds to sustained growth among the company's strategic partners and a pipeline of new business, and per the same WPXI report, he credited Governor Shapiro and the Department of Community and Economic Development for helping bring the project to Pennsylvania.
State Grant Sealed the Deal
The Commonwealth backed the expansion with a $420,000 Pennsylvania First grant administered by the state's economic development department. The expansion will create 83 new jobs over three years. The Governor's BusinessPA team coordinated the state funding proposal, per WPXI.
Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato said Tandem Foods chose Pittsburgh over California for the expansion, while Governor Shapiro said the decision will benefit people across Southwestern Pennsylvania and that his administration will continue pursuing strategic investments to help companies grow in the state, according to the WPXI report. Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development Secretary Rick Siger said the expansion reflects the strength of Pennsylvania's manufacturing workforce, business climate, and supply chain.
Agriculture at the Center of State Strategy
Manufacturing and agriculture are each among five key sectors in Governor Shapiro's 10-year Economic Development Strategy for Pennsylvania, Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding said. Redding noted that food manufacturing strengthens the state's farms and agriculture businesses, placing agriculture at the center of that broader economic plan, according to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Since Shapiro took office in 2023, his administration has secured more than $43 billion in private sector investments, creating nearly 29,000 new jobs statewide as of this month.
Allegheny Conference on Community Development CEO Stefani Pashman said Tandem Foods' expansion reinforces Southwestern Pennsylvania's position as a premier regional hub for advanced manufacturing and food production. The state's 2026-27 budget also includes $125 million allocated to the Innovate in PA 2.0 program, aimed at supporting promising startups, clinical trials and the innovation network across the Commonwealth.
Wider Ties to Pennsylvania's Food Economy
Penn State University requested $367 million in state appropriations this month to advance agricultural technologies, workforce training, biosecurity education, and food manufacturing research, according to Penn State University. Cocoa and chocolate products also rank among Pennsylvania's top commodities exported to Canada, per Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development figures reported by Inside Climate News.
At the federal level, the U.S. Department of Agriculture awarded $26.5 million through its Value-Added Producer Grant program this month, according to the USDA. Tandem Foods' $42 million investment in O'Hara Township stands as a local, state-backed counterpart to that federal funding.
