Covance’s seven-year contract with the Kellogg Company is worth $42m. The 30,000 square foot laboratory for nutritional chemistry and food safety will, at least to begin with, occupy much of its time testing for Kellogg’s, Covance has said, although it will also be able to accommodate others. The two companies have worked together for more than 30 years.
The new center is affiliated with the National Center for Food Protection (NCFP) in Battle Creek, a global food protection resource development and collaboration network initiated by Battle Creek Unlimited, an economic development organization.
The new laboratory is expected to create about 40 jobs.
When the construction of the new laboratory was announced in December last year, Covance said that it was partly in response to a spate of food contamination scandals that have rocked the food industry, such as melamine-tainted milk formula and salmonella in peanut products. The facility is open for use by all food manufacturers.