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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

Traeger Grills Plans Wythe County, Virginia, Grill Pellet Manufacturing Center

04/29/2021
Traeger Grills, manufacturer of the world’s top selling wood pellet grill and signature hardwood pellets, will invest nearly $3 million to establish a new grill pellet manufacturing operation in Wythe County, Virginia. The company plans to hire 15 new employees.

Traeger Grills will partner with Musser Lumber, a previous recipient of a Governor’s Agriculture and Forestry Industries Development (AFID) Fund award, to source Virginia-grown hardwood residual products. Musser Lumber recently expanded its ability to make customized blends of dried residual products from different hardwood species, allowing Traeger to manufacture a variety of flavored grill pellets suited for all types of cooking. At full production, Traeger expects to purchase several million pounds of hardwood products each month, creating an important new market for Virginia’s hardwood sawmills and forest landowners.

“We pride ourselves on providing customers with premium hardwood pellets for all their Traeger cooking needs,” said Jim Hardy, Chief Supply Chain Officer at Traeger. “This opportunity to work collaboratively with Governor Northam’s team is exciting and we look forward to welcoming Virginia to the Traegerhood.”

“Thanks to companies like Traegar Grills, forestry contributes $21 billion to our economy each year and supports thousands of quality jobs across our Commonwealth,” said Governor Ralph Northam. “Our Administration remains focused on supporting our diverse hardwood forests, ensuring they continue to provide a sustainable and natural raw material for manufacturers. We thank Traeger Grills for their commitment to this shared goal and the economic impact they will have on Southwest Virginia and the Commonwealth.”

The Commonwealth is partnering with Wythe County and the Joint Industrial Development Authority of Wythe County, Wytheville, and Rural Retreat on this project through the Governor’s Agriculture and Forestry Industries Development Fund, which is administered by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS). Governor Northam approved a $75,000 grant from the AFID Fund to secure the project for Virginia, which Wythe County will match with local funds.

“Traeger’s collaboration and co-location with Musser Lumber is a perfect example of how we can find creative ways to add value to Virginia’s forest products,” said Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry Bettina Ring. “I am pleased that we could partner with Wythe County to welcome Traeger Grills into our thriving forest products community and look forward to many years of working together to support this essential industry.”

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