Refrigerated & Frozen Foods
April 2006

Not too long ago, ConAgra Foods' frozen foods plant in Troy, Ohio, found itself in a rather challenging position. The 217,000-sq.-ft. facility — which produces frozen items such as school lunch pizzas and dough-enrobed products under "The Max" and Kid Cuisine brands, as well as items for private-label retail customers — needed more nitrogen for its expanding pre-cooling and freezing operations. Moreover, nitrogen and related costs were on the rise.

By employing new equipment that used an air impingement process — whereby filtered ambient air is used to pre-cool product — the plant was able to cut its nitrogen usage by 1.2 million cu. ft. per year. Moreover, the facility now saves $280,000 annually as a result of its employees' creative approach to conservation.

The process netted the Troy plant one of ConAgra's 2005 Environmental Awards — under the category of "Building on Best Practices."

As Plant Manager Scott Adkins explains, the awards are part of ConAgra Foods' Sustainable Development Program, which operates under the premise of "doing well by doing good" and encourages a culture of smart business practices and environmental conservation.

"The Sustainable Development Program encourages employees to work together to explore ways to cut waste, increase recycling, conserve energy and water, keep the air clean and protect the land," says Adkins. "In its 13-year history, the program has helped ConAgra Foods run its businesses more efficiently, while reducing landfill waste, cutting water, energy and natural gas use; and saving millions of dollars in operational expenses."

Employees at ConAgra Foods’ 217,000-sq.-ft. Troy, Ohio, facility have devised ways to reduce nitrogen and energy requirements.

The Troy facility takes a proactive approach to other environmental issues as well, notes Adkins. Plant employees are always on the lookout for opportunities in this area.

"We have reduced energy usage by using boiler exhaust to heat water, and have reduced the amount of oven releases by investing in a new spray technology," he says. "The new technology protects and preserves the environment, with reasonable economics."

Safety is also a bragging point for the Troy plant. The facility's 264 associates logged 2 million man hours without a lost-time accident in 2005.

"ConAgra Foods is dedicated to safe practices and is extremely focused on ensuring employees are trained on safe practices in every ConAgra foods facility," notes Adkins. "Its continued safety improvements are built with a solid foundation on the Key Concepts of Safety and carried out through the Management Accountability program, which ensures that all audits, monthly training requirements, JSA reviews and other vital safety functions are carried out each month. These audits are conducted at many levels throughout the plant, from team coordinators to top leadership, to keep safety at the forefront of operations."

Productivity is yet another plant strength. Gilardi Foods owned and operated the plant between 1991 and 1998, significantly expanding the 56-year-old facility for pizza and dough product production. ConAgra Foods purchased Gilardi Foods in 1998, notes Adkins, but continues to invest in facility and production capacity improvements.

Such improvements have helped the plant meet the needs of its diverse customers — especially on the school lunch side of food service.

"We make products for Wal-Mart, Save-A-Lot, Kroger and other retail customers," says Adkins. "But the Troy facility largely produces 'The Max' products. ... The Max pizza is made with Ultragrain flour, premium-quality white whole-wheat flour produced by ConAgra Mills, and contains more protein and fiber, less fat and sodium — and kids love it."

Of course, the Troy plant's environmental, quality and productivity accomplishments would not be possible without its dedicated employees.

"The Troy plant has an energetic, enthusiastic work force that is totally engaged in the priorities of the plant," stresses Adkins. "All associates support each other and problem solve together on solutions to problems that may arise."

Members of ConAgra Foods’ Troy, Ohio, plant management team pictured here, from left to right, include Scott Adkins, plant manager; Pat Canzonere, plant engineering manager; Dave Stormer, shift superintendent; Cleta Cantrell, production associate; and Theresia Rosengarten, production supervisor.

Scott Adkins, plant manager at the ConAgra Foods' Troy, Ohio, frozen foods facility, talks about some of the plant's key technology investments and its management team's commitment to the environment and the local community.

Refrigerated & Frozen Foods: What plant achievements during the past year are you most proud of and why?

Scott Adkins: The Troy, Ohio, plant continues to be a key asset for ConAgra Foods for strategic growth investments. ConAgra Foods recently purchased and installed a new mechanical spiral freezer. The new spiral reduces nitrogen usage by 330 million cubic feet each year, increases line throughput and capacity, saves $771,000 every year, and ensures that our entire product is thoroughly frozen before packaging.

R&FF: What were your greatest challenges during this same time period, and how did you address these challenges?

Adkins: Like all businesses, our plant has many priorities and a limited amount of resources. Clear priorities across ConAgra Foods — safety first, quality and then productivity — define where we put our resources.

R&FF: What are your operation's strengths in relation to the "Plant of the Year" selection criteria?

Adkins: ConAgra Foods has a rich history of promoting, financing and rewarding projects that are environmentally positive. Our Sustainable Development Award, given out by our CEO to selected plants every year, is a great example of our corporate emphasis on making positive impacts on the environment. Our Troy, Ohio, plant management team has a strong connection to our local community — our plant core value to be a responsible part of our community fits well within our corporate strategy to promote sustainable development.

R&FF: What industry issues trouble you the most in terms of plant operations, and what steps are you taking to address these concerns?

Adkins: As one of the largest food companies in North America, ConAgra Foods is known for producing high-quality, affordable meals to every household. With rising input costs — energy, transportation and raw materials — we have to stay focused on improving efficiency and performance in our plants in order to remain competitive in the market and meet consumer's expectations. We continuously focus on the fundamentals in our manufacturing capabilities; we're executing comprehensive strategies to implement better controls, install better systems and equipment, and achieve better use of capacity.

R&FF: What are some of your key operational and other goals as you move forward through 2006?

Adkins: We're executing comprehensive strategies to implement better controls, install better systems and equipment, and achieve better use of capacity. We achieve this by establishing clear priorities on safety, of our associates and visitors, ensuring the quality of our products, and increasing the value of our work for ConAgra shareholders. The Troy plant is also working with our key business partners to evaluate potential opportunities to continue to grow profitable sales of products produced in the Troy plant.

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