Category: Community

Thank You Existing Industries!

Posted on by meganjansick

Existing industries and businesses in the Sioux Falls area provide jobs, support community needs and drive our economy. On March 18th, the Sioux Falls Development Foundation hosted an existing industry appreciation event to say thank you. Attending businesses enjoyed an afternoon of golfing at Great Shots and watching the tip-off of the NCAA basketball tournament. During the event, businesses also had the opportunity to network with our partner organizations from the state and local level that offer services geared towards helping businesses grow and expand in the Sioux Falls area. Thank you for all you do!

Existing Business Services

President’s Report: Forward Sioux Falls Powers Ahead

Posted on by meganjansick
President’s Report

Forward Sioux Falls Powers Ahead

Since its inception in 1987 by the Sioux Falls Development Foundation and the Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce, the Forward Sioux Falls program has provided the mechanism and resources needed to address critical economic development projects in the region. Forward Sioux Falls 2026 continues that brilliant tradition and is off to a great start after the official kickoff last month.

FSF 2026 will continue the strong tradition of providing resources in addressing critical issues facing Sioux Falls and investors are lining up to be a part of the solution. Working from a strong foundation formed by FSF 2021 in developing Foundation Park and conducting the Strategic Workforce Action Agenda, the Development Foundation and the Chamber have designed the next five-year plan to achieve maximum benefit for the region.

Talent Attraction, Retention & Development

  • External Talent Recruitment
  • YPN Marketing, Talent Draft Day, Talent Tours, Talent Rebound, Cyber Recruitment
  • Internal Talent Development
  • Career Connections, Your Future STEM, Internships & Apprenticeships, Special Populations
  • Business Partnerships
  • Recruitment Council, WIN Summit, WIN Engagement Platform, Sioux Falls Thrive
  • Housing Partnership

Business Retention, Expansion & Attraction

  • Existing Industry Retention & Expansion
  • Comprehensive Marketing
  • Existing Industry, Targeted Industries
  • International Trade Programming
  • Foundation Park Support

Innovation & Entrepreneurship

  • Cyber/IT Park
  • USD Discovery District
  • Zeal Center for Entrepreneurship

Business Advocacy, Airport & Quality of Place

  • Innovation Center of Excellence – Leadership, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
  • Advocacy & Policy Development
  • Future Sioux Falls Strategic Plan
  • Airport Marketing

Forward Sioux Falls is now in its public phase and we invite all Sioux Falls businesses to be a part of our future. Please contact Mike Lynch at ForwardSiouxFalls.com or 605-373-2008 to discuss your participation.

Contact Mike Lynch
Bob Mundt
Story by

Bob Mundt

President/CEO, Sioux Falls Development Foundation

Forward Sioux Falls Launches Public Campaign

Posted on by meganjansick

The public portion of the Forward Sioux Falls 2026 campaign is well underway, as over 130 volunteers have been assembled to broaden the reach of investors and augment economic and workforce development efforts over the next five years.

Co-chairs Dave Rozenboom (First PREMIER Bank), Dave Flicek (Avera McKennan Hospital and University Center) and Paul Hanson (Sanford Health), as well as Honorary co-chair Mayor Paul TenHaken have assembled a team of 39 community leaders to serve on the campaign cabinet.

A public campaign launch was held on February 23rd at Southeast Technical College, where the co-chairs conveyed both the initiatives that will be extended into the next program, as well as new initiatives that will help elevate the region’s economy.

Funding for the following core initiatives will be extended into Forward Sioux Falls 2026:

  • Talent development, attraction and retention
  • Business attraction, retention and expansion
  • SiouxFalls.com
  • Foundation Park
  • USD Discovery District
  • Zeal Center for Entrepreneurship
  • Sioux Empire Housing Partnership
  • Sioux Falls Thrive
  • YPN
  • Business Advocacy

40-person campaign cabinet

New Forward Sioux Falls 2026 initiatives include:

A Housing Fund will involve a partnership among the City of Sioux Falls, Sioux Empire Housing Partnership (SEHP), US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and others to create a fund and provide resources to address our workforce accessible housing needs.

Partnering with local businesses from a variety of industry sectors, Career Connections will provide high-potential at-risk high school juniors and seniors with a career exploration and mentorship opportunity and financial assistance for concurrent dual-credit course work to help them begin their post-secondary education and career journey.

Support for REACH to expand their workplace literacy program.

Partnering with Dakota State University, local tech companies and the City of Sioux Falls, Forward Sioux Falls will provide seed funding to create a visionary Cyber/IT Park in Sioux Falls.

The Innovation Center of Excellence, housed within the Greater Sioux Falls Chamber, will provide an opportunity for the public and private sectors to partner, collaborate and deliver innovative programming focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion. The Center will also support Next Level Leadership Academy, New Ideas, Think Tank, and others.

Funding for our next “Future Sioux Falls” Strategic Plan, a community-wide long-range vision and strategic planning process.

The campaign is scheduled to run through June and to date, over $10.4 million of the $15 million cash goal has been raised.

For More Campaign Information, Click Here

Filmmaker Moved Here During Pandemic, Thinks He’ll Stay

Posted on by meganjansick

When 2020 started, John Larson planned on spending much of the first quarter in Kenya, Africa, shooting a project for Netflix.

Working from a refugee camp in what he calls “a very remote place,” he was putting in 14-hour days and didn’t have much internet access.

Flying into Nairobi in March, “I remember landing at the airport and seeing everybody had face masks on,” he said.

“We got our stuff off the plane, and they took our temperatures, and we found out COVID was happening.”

When he returned to New York City, where he had lived for nearly a decade, film work he’d lined up “was like cancel, cancel, cancel,” he said. “It was the week they were shutting down the city, and you felt like you were in a zombie movie. It would be noon, and there were no cars on the street.”

He’d planned a trip back to his native South Dakota for a family memorial service, so he flew out, and when he landed, his business partner called “and said ‘you might as well just stay in South Dakota because we’ve had every job cancel until August.’ This was in March,” Larson said. “And that’s when I came back to South Dakota, and I haven’t really left since.”

It has been an unlikely homecoming for Larson, who grew up in Chamberlain and graduated from USD, but one he’s enjoying.

As a kid, he never saw a job as a filmmaker as a career path. But working on a documentary during college sent him in that direction.

While studying film and journalism at USD, he began as a production assistant for “Warrior Women,” a documentary featuring the story of Madonna Thunder Hawk, an early American Indian Movement organizer, and her daughter Marcy and their nearly 50 years of activism.

“And I ended up working off and on for a good three or four years, first as a PA and then doing additional camera work, and eventually I was credited as a cinematographer and associate producer on the film,” he said.

“It was shot in South Dakota but brought me to New York City because that’s where they were editing the film. Half the film team was from New York City, and they needed help with the initial editing, and it just lined up.”

It was shot in South Dakota but brought me to New York City because that’s where they were editing the film. Half the film team was from New York City, and they needed help with the initial editing, and it just lined up.

John Larson, Filmmaker

The documentary was nominated for a prestigious Peabody Award and led Larson to a yearlong fellowship in Brooklyn, N.Y., at UnionDocs, a center for documentary art.

“After that, I basically had to start over at square one, first as an assistant, then a production assistant, then I gradually was able to work my way up,” he said. “Eventually, I became a director of photography, but it was very hard coming from the Midwest and not knowing anybody out there. Many people go to school there and have family in the industry, so they have a built-in network, and I had to build it from scratch.”

It led him to a variety of corporate work and commercials, along with work on the documentary short “Edith + Eddie,” the story of 96-year-old Edith and 95-year-old Eddie, who are America’s oldest interracial newlyweds. Their love story is disrupted by a family feud that threatens to tear the couple apart.

“We ended up working on it two years thinking it would be a long feature film, and it ended up being a short,” he said. “And they didn’t really need anything I shot after my first day, so it was a crazy thing.”

But it was successful, winning multiple film festivals and even being nominated for an Academy Award.

“For me, the coolest thing was it got into a pretty prestigious cinematography festival in Poland, and they actually flew me out to be at the festival and talk to people,” Larson said.

Back in Sioux Falls, he sees opportunity to build on his filmmaking career.

“There’s a lot of things I’d like to do in South Dakota, film-wise,” he said. “South Dakota is a very interesting place, and I don’t think it gets the attention it deserves. I would like to try and see if I can do some more projects here.”

He has been splitting time between Sioux Falls and family in Chamberlain but is trying to relocate to Sioux Falls on a more full-time basis.

“I used to see Sioux Falls as like a suburb without the city – I felt like the whole town was a suburb – but now it feels like it’s starting to have that city part,” he said. “I was never that into the restaurant scene before, but now I feel like it’s very up there and diverse.”

While he has been limiting exposure to the city during the pandemic, he can tell already “life is a lot easier here,” he said.

“One of the reasons I left New York is I was paying $2,000 a month for a one-bedroom apartment, and it was not a nice place. For half that, you can get a really nice one-bedroom apartment here. You can actually go to the post office and leave in under half an hour. So there are conveniences to life you can have here that are really nice and you can’t quite get in the city.”

Creative workers like Larson increasingly are finding a fit in Sioux Falls, said Denise Guzzetta, vice president of talent and workforce development for the Sioux Falls Development Foundation.

“As a filmmaker with his experience and achievements, it’s going to be exciting to see where John decides to focus his talent,” she said. “But there absolutely will be interest in working with him, and he’ll also find it’s very easy to travel from Sioux Falls when his work takes him elsewhere, while taking advantage of everything that makes this such a desirable place to live.”

More affordable housing and a supportive arts community are helping the community stand out when photographers and other artists look for a home base, she added.

“Like John said, you can afford to live here, you can still have an urban-feeling environment, and you can grow your career without feeling like you need to constantly be working a second job or going into debt,” Guzzetta said.

For Larson, the move has allowed him to consider branching out with his career and inspired him to start work on a new documentary.

“I would really like to be able to start making my own films here – about South Dakota,” he said. “For now, I’m staying.”

Want to learn more about life in Sioux Falls?

Connect Here

Forward Sioux Falls Launches Five-Year Campaign with Focus on Future

Posted on by meganjansick

For nearly 35 years, every five years, Sioux Falls has brought an unparalleled partnership together to invest in moving the community forward.

Forward Sioux Falls is unique in the nation, bringing together the Sioux Falls Development Foundation, Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce, the public sector including the city of Sioux Falls and a broad cross-section of private investors from the business community.

This platform — Forward Sioux Falls — has become nationally recognized for creating decades of economic growth and corresponding quality-of-place enhancements, making Sioux Falls the envy of many communities across the country.

But 2020 wasn’t like any other year.

So as community leaders contemplated the next Forward Sioux Falls program, there were decisions to be made.

Co-chairs Dave Flicek, regional president and CEO of Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center; Paul Hanson, president and CEO of Sanford Sioux Falls; and Dave Rozenboom, president of First Premier Bank; started having conversations.

“They went out and talked to our top 20 to 25 investors, along with community leaders, and said: ‘What do you think? Do we start planning to go forward or look at asking everyone to extend one more year on their five-year investment?’ ” said Tom Micelotta, who facilitated the feasibility study for the campaign through National Community Development Services.

The answer was resounding: A one-year extension wasn’t the answer.

“They said, no, we can’t think of a better time given all the uncertainty to make sure Forward Sioux Falls stays in place,” Micelotta said. “For 34 years, it’s been a great balance between creating jobs, retaining jobs, quality-of-place and workforce development, and we wanted to keep our foot on the gas.”

By July, conversations grew to include 65 companies as a preliminary Forward Sioux Falls plan was in place.

“There was overwhelming support for the plan being exactly what was needed and also that we need to launch the campaign now,” Micelotta said.

Forward Sioux Falls then assembled a record 40-person leadership Cabinet, a diverse group that will help move the process forward with a goal of $15 million in cash investments over the next five years.

40-person leadership cabinet

“There’s always been a balance with Forward Sioux Falls between job creation, diversification, the corresponding population growth that needs to occur and the quality-of-place investment necessary to support that,” said Rozenboom, who also helped lead the previous Forward Sioux Falls campaign.

“We need to be a place where people want to live, and I think Forward Sioux Falls has done an excellent job supporting that and supporting initiatives that make this a place not just where people want to live but work and raise a family as well.”

Since its origin in 1987, Forward Sioux Falls “has helped us chart our course to building a strong community,” said Mayor Paul TenHaken, honorary co-chair.

“The 2026 campaign initiatives will set us up for future success over the next five years in key areas for our community, including housing and workforce development, which remain critical to our continued growth.”

The community has enjoyed a robust and resilient economy for many years and is poised to emerge in a position of strength post-pandemic, TenHaken added.

“To continue that growth, we need to focus on the right investments at the right time for Sioux Falls.”

Here’s a look at some of the key investments proposed by the upcoming Forward Sioux Falls program:

For 34 years, it’s been a great balance between creating jobs, retaining jobs, quality-of-place and workforce development, and we wanted to keep our foot on the gas.

Tom Micelotta

Talent attraction, retention and development

Internal talent training, external talent recruitment and nontraditional workforce recruitment are all strategies currently undertaken by Forward Sioux Falls that will continue in the new five-year program.

Additionally, the Forward Sioux Falls program will partner with the city of Sioux Falls and local and federal housing organizations to establish a fund that will provide resources to address accessible workforce housing needs.

“Accessible housing is on everyone’s list,” Hanson said. “As we look at our employees, and within the community, we’ve had a lot of internal discussions about it.”

Sioux Falls can continue to attract jobs, “but if we don’t have places to live, it will be hard to support people to be employed in them,” Flicek added.

Business retention, expansion and attraction

Forward Sioux Falls also invests in supporting business retention, assisting local companies with expansion opportunities, including state programs, international trade, licensing, workforce and financing programs.

Additionally, it pursues a comprehensive marketing program to target industries, companies, site selectors and other professionals.

“One of the things I heard overwhelmingly in conversations leading up to this campaign was that our investors support aligned strategies for growth and development, for workforce and for bringing more people to our service area,” Hanson said. “There isn’t one item we’ve talked about that doesn’t benefit all of us.”

Innovation and entrepreneurship

A signature project to drive innovation in the coming five years is a proposed cyber/IT park, which will receive seed funding from Forward Sioux Falls.

It’s envisioned as a partnership between Dakota State University and the city of Sioux Falls to create a cyber/IT campus.

“We’re really excited about exploring that relationship, and I think we’ll be good for each other, and there’s significant need in our community to build out those resources,” Rozenboom said.

Forward Sioux Falls also will continue to assist with operating support and, more importantly, to provide funding to target bioscience firms to locate in the USD Discovery District.

Additionally, program support for the entrepreneurial community and funding to expand initiatives for the Zeal Center for Entrepreneurship are planned.

Business advocacy, airport and quality-of-place enhancement

Forward Sioux Falls historically has supported quality-of-place initiatives and the continued effort to market and attract air service in Sioux Falls – both priorities that continue in the new plan.

Additionally, an Innovation Center of Excellence is proposed as a new center within the Chamber of Commerce to deliver programming through public-private partnerships focused on diversity, equity and inclusion.

“The workforce of tomorrow in Sioux Falls will look different than the workforce of yesterday,” Rozenboom said.

“It’s important we continue to embrace the diversity occurring in our community, with a focus on our K-12 schools and those pursuing post-secondary education. Exposing students and adults to opportunities that prepare them for their next step in life allows them to contribute most productively to our community.”

The outcomes

How will the next Forward Sioux Falls program measure success? Here’s a look at some of the key outcomes by 2026:

  • 1,000 new housing units from the Housing Fund.
  • 25,000 new residents.
  • 12 ongoing talent/workforce recruitment programs.
  • 250 post-secondary recruitment partners.
  • 1,000 apprenticeships/internships/job shadows.
  • 4,500 new direct jobs at above median wage.
  • $500 million in new capital investments.
  • $250 million in new property tax revenue.
  • 300-plus acres sold and developed.
  • 300 existing companies assisted.
  • 30 foreign trade relationships formed.
  • 35-plus site selector/broker events.
  • 75-plus companies hosted.
  • 30,000 direct workforce contacts.
  • 250,000 electronic workforce exposures.

The current program also includes a refreshed Future Sioux Falls strategic plan, which will take a comprehensive, long-term look at the metro area’s needs and opportunities.

“This will be a really energizing look at our future, and there will be an opportunity for broad-based community input,” Rozenboom said.

Forward Sioux Falls has a record to show it can achieve ambitious goals.

Since 1987, the number of jobs in the Sioux Falls MSA has increased from 67,100 to 159,900 in 2019 – 238 percent growth. During that same time period, the metro area has experienced a population growth of 143,000 net new residents, a 215 percent increase.

Sioux Falls has been named the No. 1 small city for business and careers by Forbes 12 of the past 20 years.

“This is a true example of a partnership between public and private, and it works very well,” Hanson said.

Businesses told the campaign leaders what makes Sioux Falls unique is “we don’t build a moat,” Flicek added. “We allow other businesses to come in, and expand and grow the whole pie.”

There was overwhelming resolve that Sioux Falls always moves forward, no matter what’s happening elsewhere, he continued.

“What’s unique about Forward Sioux Falls is it’s a central repository of ideas, as opposed to each of our businesses making up our own ideas. Paul and I are professional colleagues. We compete for health care, but we want to prosper Sioux Falls. So organizations like Forward Sioux Falls bringing common solutions to our problems is what makes it so successful.’

And the current campaign already has attracted one new resident – consultant Micelotta, who moved to Sioux Falls from Florida during 2020.

“I drank the Kool-Aid,” he said. “I live here now. So I’m a big proponent of it all. People ask me what’s so special. It’s the people. Look at our three leaders and honorary chair, the mayor. I wish I could bottle it and sell it to other communities.”

Businesses will be hearing directly from Forward Sioux Falls in the weeks ahead, but to get connected right away, contact Mike Lynch, director of investor relations, at 605-373-2008, and visit forwardsiouxfalls.com.

Visit Website

CJ Foods Selects Sioux Falls and Foundation Park

Posted on by meganjansick

The Sioux Falls Development Foundation is very pleased to welcome CJ Foods USA, a global market leader in food production, to Foundation Park, Sioux Falls and South Dakota for their next major expansion. The announcement was made by the company on Monday, January 11.

“We are excited to continue working with them to finalize their project here in Sioux Falls,” said Bob Mundt, President & CEO of the Development Foundation. “This is the latest example of the vision that elected and community leaders had when they created Foundation Park in 2015 and the concept of a mega site for large scale development. We will continue to diversify our economy with clean, high tech manufacturing generating new high skilled living wage jobs in the region.”

The new facility will result in more than 600 new full-time jobs by 2025 and include automated state-of-the-art food production lines, a warehouse and distribution center, shipping and receiving docks, and office space. The project will represent an overall investment of nearly 500 hundred million dollars over the course of construction. Additional investments in the facility’s capabilities will be made as demand increases over the next several years.

Adding this world-class Asian food plant in South Dakota will help us lead the fast-growing Asian food category in North America and achieve our long-term growth plans.

Dimitrios Smyrnios, Executive Chairman of CJCJ Food, Americas and Schwan’s Company CEO

“This strategically important new investment represents an extremely exciting time for both CJ Foods and Schwan’s Company,” said Executive Chairman of CJCJ Food, Americas and Schwan’s Company CEO Dimitrios Smyrnios. “Adding this world-class Asian food plant in South Dakota will help us lead the fast-growing Asian food category in North America and achieve our long-term growth plans. Ultimately, this plant will meet the increasing needs of our retail and food-service customers by creating significant production capacity, fueling Asian food category growth, and enabling future innovation.”

To help facilitate the project, company leaders from CJ Foods and Schwan’s Company worked with state and local public agencies and officials in South Dakota, including: Gov. Kristi Noem; Governor’s Office of Economic Development Commissioner Steve Westra; Sioux Falls Mayor Paul TenHaken and Sioux Falls Development Foundation President & CEO Bob Mundt.

South Dakota is open for business, and we’re excited for this tremendous investment in our state.

Kristi Noem, South Dakota Governor

“South Dakota is open for business, and we’re excited for this tremendous investment in our state. The Sioux Falls community will benefit greatly from the new full-time jobs that this facility will provide,” said South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem. “I want to thank Dimitrios and everyone at CJ Foods and Schwan’s who worked with us to make this happen.”

More details about the specific products and brands that will be made at the facility, as well as renderings and more specific construction timelines, are expected to be shared this spring.

CJ Foods USA to Build World-Class Asian Food Production Facility in South Dakota

Posted on by meganjansick

Major project to bring 600-plus new, full-time jobs to Sioux Falls, S.D.

(Los Angeles, Calif. — Jan. 11, 2021) CJ Foods USA Inc. (CJ Foods), a U.S.-based affiliate of global lifestyle company CJ CheilJedang (CJCJ), today announced its plans to build a new 700,000-square-foot Asian food production facility in Sioux Falls, S.D.

The new facility, planned for Foundation Park in Sioux Falls, will result in more than 600 new full-time jobs by 2025 and include automated state-of-the-art food production lines, a warehouse and distribution center, shipping and receiving docks, and office space. The project will represent an overall investment of several hundred million dollars over the course of construction and will be funded through operating cash flow. Further investments in the facility’s capabilities will be made as demand increases over the next several years.

All foods made at the production facility will be sold and distributed by CJ Foods and Schwan’s Company, a fellow U.S.-based affiliate of CJ Foods. Once complete, people working at the facility will focus on making a broad range of Asian-style meals, sides, snacks and appetizers in the shelf-stable and frozen categories. The new South Dakota facility will represent an expansion of CJCJ’s Asian food production capabilities in North America, with CJ Foods already operating five Asian-style food plants in California, Ohio, New York and New Jersey and Schwan’s Company operating two in Texas.

“This strategically important new investment represents an extremely exciting time for both CJ Foods and Schwan’s Company,” said Executive Chairman of CJCJ Food, Americas and Schwan’s Company CEO Dimitrios Smyrnios. “Adding this world-class Asian food plant in South Dakota will help us lead the fast-growing Asian food category in North America and achieve our long-term growth plans. Ultimately, this plant will meet the increasing needs of our retail and food-service customers by creating significant production capacity, fueling Asian food category growth, and enabling future innovation.”

“We thank state and local officials in South Dakota for helping to bring this project to Sioux Falls. We look forward to building a long-lasting relationship that will be mutually beneficial for CJCJ’s family of businesses and the residents of South Dakota,” added Smyrnios.

 

This strategically important new investment represents an extremely exciting time for both CJ Foods and Schwan’s Company

Dimitrios Smyrnios, Executive Chairman of CJCJ Food, Americas and Schwan’s Company CEO

Investing in Asian Food Marketplace Growth

CJ Foods is investing in the new Asian-food facility to support it and Schwan’s Company’s growth initiatives in the retail and food-service markets in North America. The two companies offer several Asian-style brands in both the food-service and retail sectors, including Bibigo®, Pagoda®, Kahiki®, Minh® and Annie Chun’s® foods.

Asian food is extraordinarily popular in the United States alone, representing a more than $38 billion industry across retail stores and food-service venues, which includes 70,000 Asian-style restaurants. Worldwide, the cuisine’s popularity is growing rapidly as consumers increasingly embrace more global flavors. In a recent study by Technomic®, a leading consulting and research firm, 23 percent of global food consumers say they are preparing more global flavors at home than two years ago. This rate was at 39 percent with millennials, according to the study.

“The growth and popularity of Asian cuisine is something we expect to continue unabated over the coming years, especially as consumers have the opportunity to increasingly experience high-quality, authentic global foods when dining out or preparing meals at home,” said Smyrnios. “We are excited to work with our retail and food-service customers to expand the Asian food category and create great consumer experiences.”

Working with South Dakota Public Officials

To help facilitate the project, company leaders from CJ Foods and Schwan’s Company worked with state and local public agencies and officials in South Dakota, including: Gov. Kristi Noem; Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) Commissioner Steve Westra; Sioux Falls Development Foundation CEO & President Bob Mundt; and Sioux Falls Mayor Paul TenHaken.

“South Dakota is open for business, and we’re excited for this tremendous investment in our state. The Sioux Falls community will benefit greatly from the new full-time jobs that this facility will provide,” said South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem. “I want to thank Dimitrios and everyone at CJ Foods and Schwan’s who worked with us to make this happen.”

Groundbreaking Event in Sioux Falls Planned for Spring 2021

More details about the specific products and brands that will be made at the facility, as well as renderings and more specific construction timelines, are expected to be shared at an event at the Sioux Falls site of the future plant in the spring. Event attendees will include CJ Foods and Schwan’s Company leaders as well as South Dakota public officials.

Foundation Park

About CJ Foods

CJ Foods USA Inc. is a U.S. affiliate of global lifestyle company CJ CheilJedang. Since its opening in 1978, CJ Foods has quickly become a major manufacturer and distributor of Asian food products with a focus on Korean food. Through brands like Bibigo® and Annie Chun’s®, the company offers an extensive range of packaged food products, including dumplings, noodles and sauces. Backed by a global company with more than 60 years of experience in the food industry, CJ Foods’ mission is to drive awareness of Asian food, especially Korean food, and provide only the best quality products to U.S. households across the nation. To learn more about CJ Foods, visit www.cjfoods.com.

About Schwan’s Company

Based in Minnesota, Schwan’s Company is a leading U.S.-based manufacturer and marketer of quality foods offered through retail-grocery and food-service channels. Its many popular brands include Red Baron®, Tony’s®, Big Daddy’s®, Villa Prima™ and Freschetta® pizza, Mrs. Smith’s® and Edwards® desserts and Pagoda® Asian-style snacks. The company is an affiliate of global lifestyle company, CJ CheilJedang. To learn more about Schwan’s Company, visit www.schwanscompany.com.

About CJ CheilJedang

CJ CheilJedang is the core subsidiary in charge of the food and bio business sectors of the CJ Group. It has led the development of the Korean food industry for the past 60 years and contributed to the development of the bio industry as the nation’s top food company. Launched in 1953 as a food ingredient company, CJ CheilJedang has expanded its business to processed foods. CJ CheilJedang has achieved outstanding growth, quantitatively and qualitatively, in food processing and food ingredients in the food business sector, as well as in the bio business sector. The company is striving to go beyond being the No. 1 in Korea to becoming a global leader in each business sector. CJ CheilJedang will continue to grow and evolve in the food & bio sectors by practicing the spirit of OnlyOne and develop into a global lifestyle company. To learn more about CJCheilJedang, visit www.cj.co.kr.

Media Contact: Mike Smith, VP of PR & Communications, 507-537-8550, questions@schwans.com

Statement Regarding the CJ Foods Announcement

Statement Regarding the CJ Foods Announcement

Posted on by meganjansick

The Sioux Falls Development Foundation is very pleased that CJ Foods USA Inc., a global market leader in food production, has chosen Sioux Falls and South Dakota for their next major expansion and we welcome them to our corporate community. We are excited to continue working with them to finalize their project here in Sioux Falls.

This is the latest example of the vision that elected and community leaders had when they created Foundation Park in 2015 and the concept of a mega site for large scale development. We will continue to diversify our economy with clean, high tech manufacturing generating new high skilled living wage jobs in the region. CJ Foods’ announcement is yet another indication of our city’s strong outlook for 2021 and beyond.

Bob Mundt
Contact

Bob Mundt

President/CEO

Talent Thursday with Marsh & McLennan Agency

Posted on by meganjansick

Talent Thursday with the Sioux Falls Development Foundation is a LIVE Facebook event at 3 PM Central every Thursday. During this 30-minute program, we share the career journeys of Teagan Molden and Kira Kimball from Marsh & McLennan Agency, about their experiences working in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, for a global insurance provider.

Talent Thursday with First PREMIER Bank

Posted on by meganjansick

Talent Thursday with the Sioux Falls Development Foundation is a LIVE Facebook event at 3 PM Central every Thursday. During this 30-minute program, we share the career journey of Kimberely Munoz of First PREMIER Bank about her experience working for a community-oriented, nationally recognized financial services leader headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Talent Thursday with ISG

Posted on by meganjansick

Talent Thursday with the Sioux Falls Development Foundation is a LIVE Facebook event at 3 PM Central every Thursday. During this 30-minute program, we share the career journey of David Doxtad, president and leader of a nationally recognized engineering firm, ISG, headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Groundbreakings: Sunnycrest Village

Posted on by meganjansick
September 1, 2020

Sunnycrest Village Groundbreaking

Sunnycrest Village broke ground September 1st on a 60-unit addition to their current 223-unit apartment complex. This building will include modern, well-designed one- and two-bedroom apartments with attached garages, two elevators, and six resident lounges for independent seniors. The expected opening date is late 2021/early 2022.