Top Seedz, a Buffalo, N.Y., maker of seed-heavy crackers, opened a new production facility in Buffalo. Although they didn’t provide square footage or dollar value, they said it’s “10 times the capacity of its previous operation.”
The company called it “a highly automated production plant … largely staffed by women refugees” – part of the company’s mission as a woman-owned business. Rebecca Brady, originally from New Zealand, is founder and CEO.
Her first employee was a woman refugee from Bhutan, and she now has women from more than 20 countries — many of them also former refugees — among her workforce of 42. Working with local agencies, Top Seedz provides skills training and even English-language training when needed.
The new facility will help the seven-year-old firm keep up with its growing national distribution, which it says has tripled in the past six months. The cracker maker now has five product lines, including new snack size pouches, which will be available in 0.75 oz and 1.5 oz sizes.
