Heartland Produce's New Headquarters and Distribution Facility in Kenosha

Friday, July 16th, 2021 -- 1:01 PM

Gov. Tony Evers, Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation Secretary and CEO Missy Hughes, and Kenosha-area officials today celebrated the groundbreaking of Heartland Produce’s new $29 million headquarters and distribution facility in Kenosha.

Heartland Produce, a third-generation family-owned business, supplies fresh produce to retailers and foodservice distributors. With their new headquarters, the company becomes the first tenant of the Greeneway Development, which will eventually feature industrial, commercial, retail, and multi-family housing on the site of the former Dairyland Greyhound Park.

WEDC is supporting Heartland Produce’s expansion plans with up to $500,000 in state income tax credits over the next three years. The actual amount of credits Heartland Produce will receive is contingent upon the number of jobs created and the amount of capital investment during that period.

The project includes construction of a 205,000-square-foot state-of-the-art produce distribution facility with room for future expansion. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the company saw increased demand, and the new facility will give Heartland Produce room to create additional fruit and vegetable ripening rooms to increase production.

The company is expecting to create 40 full-time jobs with average wages above $28 per hour. Heartland Produce started in 1989 in Elgin, Illinois, but moved to Kenosha in 1994. The company has more than 160 employees working at its Kenosha location and at grocery stores around the state.

Selling to independent grocery stores and national chains, Heartland Produce distributes fruits, vegetables, organics, and locally grown produce through its Organic Indeed and Fresh Indeed brands. The Greeneway Development is being planned by the Forest County Potawatomi and Zilber Property Group.

Greeneway plans call for more than 1.6 million square feet in industrial space, about 432 multi-family apartment residences, and 117,000 square feet of commercial and retail space, with integrated sustainable design features throughout. It replaces the former Dairyland Greyhound Park, which closed in 2009.

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