The Smucker’s manufacturing and distribution facility is a $1.1 billion frozen sandwich plant located at the JeffMet Industrial Complex in McCalla, Jefferson County, Alabama, and it has been in production since November 2024. Running to 900,000 square feet, the plant now underpins Uncrustables, which passed $1 billion in annual net sales in fiscal 2026.

Why the Smucker’s McCalla Facility Mattered to Uncrustables

Capacity was always the point. Chief operating officer John Brase told investors McCalla could carry the brand well beyond $1 billion, and management now guides to mid single digit growth in fiscal 2027 rather than the double digit run of recent years. Alabama’s next large industrial build has moved north, to the $430 million Minth Group campus in Gadsden.

Project Overview

• Project Name: Smucker’s manufacturing and distribution facility, dedicated to Uncrustables production
• Location: JeffMet Industrial Complex, McCalla, Jefferson County, Alabama, roughly 24 miles from Birmingham along Interstate 20
• Project Value: Approximately $1.1 billion, per the J.M. Smucker Co. announcement of November 2021
• Client and Owner: The J.M. Smucker Co.
• Key Components: 900,000 square feet of manufacturing and distribution space delivered in three phases, dedicated to Uncrustables frozen sandwiches
• Jobs Created: Up to 750
• Incentives: Up to $1.5 million tied to new employee wage thresholds and paid in four instalments, alongside a $1 million cap on Jefferson County development service building permit fees
• Construction Start: Early 2022, following the November 2021 announcement
• Completion: Opened November 2024, slightly ahead of the original 2025 production target
• Strategic Impact: Third dedicated Uncrustables plant after Scottsville in Kentucky and Longmont in Colorado, lifting the capacity ceiling on a brand that grew from roughly $800 million in fiscal 2024 to $1 billion in fiscal 2026

Project Team

• Client and Owner: The J.M. Smucker Co.
• Executive Leadership: Mark Smucker, chair of the board, president and chief executive officer
• Divisional Leadership: Rebecca Scheidler, senior vice president and general manager, Frozen Handheld and Spreads
• Operations: John Brase, chief operating officer
• State Partner: State of Alabama, with Governor Kay Ivey attending the opening
• County Partner: Jefferson County, which approved the incentive package and the permit fee cap
• Community Partners: Best Buddies in Alabama and the Community Foodbank of Central Alabama
• Main Contractor: Not publicly disclosed

Reported 25th November 2021: The Ohio-based J.M. Smucker Co. has plans of developing its new Smucker’s manufacturing and distribution facility in Jefferson County. This $1.1 billion factory will be completed in three phases and is intended to support the production of Smucker’s Uncrustables frozen sandwiches.

Smucker’s manufacturing and distribution facility to bring 750 new jobs

The new Smucker’s manufacturing and distribution facility is to be developed at the JeffMet Industrial Complex in McCalla and this facility will provide upto 750 new jobs in the area. Incentives worth upto $1.5 million will also be awarded based on the employee head account and payments will be made in four installments which include: $2,000 for each new employee who has received  remuneration worth at least $50,000; $3,000  for each  new employee who has received remuneration worth at least $75,000; and $4,000 for each new employee who has received remuneration worth at least $100,000 for a period of at least 12 months. In addition to the incentives, a $1 million limit has also been placed on the total county development service building permit fees for this project. 

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The President and Chief Executive Officer of Smucker Co., Mark Smucker, was grateful to the State of Alabama and Jefferson County officials for their support. He also said that the company was excited and ready to leverage on the opportunities and growth which their investments will present. Construction work on the new facility is expected to commence by January, with production scheduled to begin in 2025.

Kay Ivey, the Governor of Alabama mentioned that the development of this new Smucker’s manufacturing and distribution facility in the state was as a result of  Alabama’s business-friendly economic policies. Ivey described J.M Smucker Co. as one of America’s leading consumer packaged goods companies in the food sector and he commended the company for its decision to make such a significant investment in Jefferson. Ivey also added, “Not only will the company’s growth project create a large number of jobs in McCalla, but it will also permit us to build a long-standing relationship with a top consumer brand.”