The Case Pork Roll Company has been making pork roll in the city for almost 150 years.
TRENTON -- The Case Pork Roll Company plans to expand their manufacturing plant in Trenton and Mayor Eric Jackson said he will lend any assistance possible to the company, which has been making pork roll in the city for almost 150 years.
Case owner and CEO Tom Grieb said plans call for expanding what's now a garage and storage area at the Washington Street plant into another slicing line.
The plant currently has one slicing line, so another one would literally double production. "And we would hire more people," Grieb said Thursday.
The plant, in the city's Chambersburg neighborhood, employs about 40 people, he said.
Trenton Mayor Eric Jackson and Case Pork Roll Company officials during a tour of the Trenton company's plant Wed. Dec. 2, 2015. (Photo courtesy of Mayor Jackson's office) The company will be putting an application before the city's zoning board in the near future, Jackson said.
"They are looking to expand part of their manufacturing plant, and their capacity and I am excited by it," Jackson said.
Jackson said part of his economic development plan is to not only attract more businesses to the city, but also to keep the ones the city has and assist them in their growth.
The mayor said he's been reaching out to such businesses with deep roots in the city, like Case, and on Wednesday he toured the pork roll plant with Grieb and other officials.
"It was absolutely fantastic, " Jackson said of the tour. "They continue to grow and employ local residents."
The mayor called the Case plant and company a "first class organization."
"My administration will assist Case along the way to ensure that the company remains a part of our city's economic vitality," Jackson said in a Facebook post. "Small and midsize companies are integral to Trenton's economy, and I am committed to helping them thrive in our city
Grieb said the mayor reaching to businesses was an "excellent" move and he appreciated the interest from the city.
Case, though, has no interest in leaving the city, Grieb said.
"It's very important for us to stay in Trenton," Grieb said. The current production facility dates to the 1940s, Grieb said. "I like where I'm at."
The company was started in 1870 by Belle Meade (Montgomery Township) by farmer and butcher George Washington Case.
The company was originally called The Case Pork Pack Co. and the company's early pork roll product was garnished in corn husks.
Now, the company locks in the hickory smoked flavor by using vacuumed sealing, the company said.
In September, the company sponsored the inaugural Trenton Thunder World Famous Case's Pork Roll Eating Championship at Arm & Hammer Park.
Kevin Shea may be reached at kshea@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@kevintshea. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.
