Richelieu Foods, Braintree, MA, recently announced it’s opening a 115,000-square-foot factory at 120 W. Palatine Road in Wheeling, IL. The maker of frozen pizzas and salad dressing will begin hiring approximately 125 workers within the next 90 days and plans to open the facility in the second half of 2016.

The Wheeling plant joins Richelieu’s four other Midwest plants in Elk Grove Village, IL; Washington Court House, OH; Beaver Dam, WI; and Grundy Center, IA. According to CEO Tim O’Connor, the company manufactures in the Midwest because the region provides better access to ingredients. “Within the pizza business, we want to be close to the cheese and crust manufactures, and quite frankly, there's also a very good workforce,” he says.