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Container firm expands in Manteca
Ecologic Brands may hire as many as 30
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An illustration from Ecologic Brands website gives an idea of the bottles construction. - photo by Image Contributed

A vacant building in the Manteca Industrial Park is getting new life as a green-friendly container production plant for Oakland-based Ecologic Brands.

Company marketing manager Jack Wei indicated the firm is shooting for a July start-up date for production. The expansion plant may ultimately employ between 25 and 30 workers.

 The firm established in 2008 specializes in sustainable consumer packaging. They are seeking new markets for their containers that are finding growing popularity among everything from producers of home cleaning products to organic dairy firms.

The bottles consist of two major components - an outer shell and an inner pouch. The outer shell is made from 100 percent recycled cardboard and newspaper. It can be recycled up to seven more times and is compostable.

The inner punch consists of No. 4 LDPE plastic that uses up to 70 percent less plastic than conventional plastic jugs. The No. 4 plastic is typically recycled with plastic bags. As such it produces low volume waste. 

Such containers are expected to have strong market growth given the growing number of laws requiring the reduction of greenhouse gas and diverting containers from landfills.

Wei said the firm was looking for an existing building and scoured various communities before coming across the vacant manufacturing facility on Carnegie Street in the northern part of Manteca’s original industrial park.

City Manager Karen McLaughlin said she was pleased to see Ecologic Brands pick Manteca for a plant expansion.

There are additional firms now looking at other vacant buildings in the Manteca Industrial Park as well as newer business parks in Manteca.

Councilman Vince Hernandez noted that the city is trying to make sure it can position itself to take advantage of the rebounding economy and is actively seeking out opportunities.

Crothall Healthcare, as an example, is near inking a deal for a new facility in northwest Manteca on Airport Way to provide laundry and linen services primarily to healthcare customers. That firm will employ 89 workers.