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BRIGHAM CITY — A French pastry company is in the process of evaluating whether it will commit hundreds of millions to building a new manufacturing plant in Box Elder County after a stalled project at home forced the company to look to expand elsewhere.
While no official announcement has been made, Utah could see an influx of croissants in the next few years.
Paul Larsen, Brigham City's economic development director, said he has been working with Bridor, an international wholesale pastry producer, for the last nine months to reel in what would likely be a $250 to $300 million investment. The company produces bread dough and pastries that are frozen and shipped to customers to be baked and packaged.
The city submitted a proposal for the project to the Economic Development Corporation of Utah in June 2023. A month prior, the French company announced it would be abandoning plans for a pastry plant outside of Rennes, in the Bretagne region of France, after environmental protests and litigation stalled the project.
Despite receiving the necessary administrative authorizations, a press release in May 2023 stated construction had yet to get off the ground due to the legal appeals pending. "We can't afford to wait 10 years or longer for our industrial project to come to fruition, when our competitors abroad take a maximum of one to two years to obtain the same building permits," Louis Le Duff, CEO of Bridor's parent company Groupe Le Duff, said in French.
Eau et Rivières de Bretagne, an environmental organization, said it filed an appeal against the plant due to concerns over the company's carbon footprint and water usage, among other reasons, claiming the proposed site would use over 187,000 cubic meters of water a year, which it equates to the usage of a town of over 6,000 people.
In response to the growing pressure at its home, Bridor acquired American company Lecoq Cuisine and doubled its Montreal site "to meet U.S. demand," the press release said in French. It also appears that it is targeting northern Utah for its first push into the western United States. The proposed site would open January 2026.
"This is a company we would love to see in northern Utah, without question," said Ben Hart, executive director of the Utah Inland Port Authority. The industrial facility would be part of the Reeder Ranch section of the city's Golden Spike Inland Port Project Area. The port authority approved an annual property tax rebate for Bridor during its December 2023 board meeting, contingent on capital expenditures greater than $100 million, and reinvestment into the community.
While Hart is hopeful, he said, "There are still a lot of moving parts," and his experience recruiting businesses tells him "you can never count on something before the ink is dry on the deal."
The county's first public infrastructure district was also set up to fund improvements the project necessitates. Larsen said a rail crossing would have to be relocated, along with other local infrastructure projects, site preparation and internal road plans for the industrial park.
With an estimated 200 new jobs or more, Larsen said the company may need to develop a talent pipeline among the several thousand people who commute to Weber, Davis and Salt Lake counties, given the low unemployment rate in the surrounding area.
In a City Council meeting last month, Larsen told officials that the company has done "the most due diligence on us I have ever seen on any project," in his 27 years as an employee. He told KSL that the water usage of the plant, adjacent to the Bear River, would be comparable to the nearby Nucor steel plant, and is "not a heavy water user."
Hart said the company would have to comply with all local ordinances and environmental regulations if it were to move in, but the port authority defers to local and state officials on that side of the conversation.
Bridor has not yet submitted comprehensive development plans and did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
"We're excited to see them come," Larsen said. "It would be a great addition to Brigham City."
