Regional industries

Pfizer Pharmaceuticals has one of two North Carolina plants in Rocky Mount. This site is one of the largest sterile injectable facilities in the world, with more than 1.4 million square feet of manufacturing space on 250 acres. Nearly 25 percent of Pfizer’s sterile injectables used in U.S. hospitals are produced at the site.

At this facility, a wide range of products are produced, including anesthesia, analgesia, therapeutics, anti-infectives and neuromuscular blockers. These products are available in small volume presentations, such as ampules, vials and syringes.

NATRON ENERGY

Natron Energy, Inc., a global leader in sodium-ion battery technology, will build the first sodium-ion battery gigafactory in the United States at the Kingsboro Business Park. As announced in August 2024, Natron Energy will build a nearly $1.4 billion manufacturing plant with the promise of more than 1,000 jobs.

founded in 2012 with headquarters in Santa Clara, California, Natron Energy is a pioneer in the research, development, and manufacture of sodium-ion batteries (NIBs). Natron’s innovative battery cells leverage the company’s patented Prussian blue electrodes to deliver safe, high-power, long-life battery energy storage solutions.

“The Kingsboro megasite offers not only ideal site characteristics, but access to a world-class labor force and a business-friendly climate” said Wendell Brooks, co-CEO, Natron Energy.

PRUDENTIAL STAINLESS & ALLOYS, LLP.

Prudential Stainless & Alloys, L.P., a globally recognized master distributor, announced in October 2024 they have purchased the warehouse facility in the Tarboro Commerce Center Industrial Park. The company will occupy and renovate the existing shell building with a $8.4 million investment and the addition of 30 employees.

Prudential Stainless is a wholesale master distributor of stainless steel, nickel alloy and aluminum pipe, tube and bar. As a leading master distributor, they only sell to other distributors throughout the USA, Canada and worldwide. The company will relocate from New Jersey to North Carolina.

“We chose Tarboro for the business-friendly environment, the welcoming people, the central location for truck and air shipments, and the proximity to seaports.  We are very excited to make this move and to become part of such an amicable community for years to come,” said Joe Kreitzer, president of Prudential Stainless & Alloys, L.P.

SARA LEE FROZEN BAKERY

For more than 30 years, Sara Lee Frozen Bakery, a provider of baked desserts and treats has called Tarboro home.

Sara Lee Frozen Bakery was officially formed in 2018 as part of a divestiture from Tyson Foods. While the frozen bakery entity is relatively new, the Sara Lee brand has existed since the 1950’s and is renowned for their iconic frozen desserts. Headquartered in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois, the company operates three bakeries in Michigan, Massachusetts and North Carolina. The Tarboro bakery employs more than 650 people and produces a wide array of frozen bakery and dessert products, including croissants, biscuits, pound cake, muffins, brownies, cheesecake and more. 

“In our area, we have business partners, not competitors. We are all part of the same family and serve the same interest — to help the people of our community,” said Charles Gilmore, HR training generalist at Sare Lee Frozen Bakery.

THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY BAKERY

The Cheesecake Factory Bakery owns and operates two production facilities, one in Calabasas Hills, California, and one in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. Since 2006, the Rocky Mount plant has housed production operations and a distribution center. As a food processing plant, The Cheesecake Factory Bakery produces approximately 60 varieties of proprietary cheesecakes and other baked desserts using high-quality ingredients for The Cheesecake Factory restaurants and for international licensees and third-party customers. The primary role of the bakery operations is to produce innovative, high-quality cheesecakes and other baked desserts for sale at the company’s restaurants and as the supplier of cheesecakes through international licensees. 

“We were picking a location that would optimize our distribution costs,” said Keith Carango, senior vice president and COO of The Cheesecake Factory’s Bakery Division, on selecting the Carolinas Gateway Partnership region.  “The CGP was very personal in the way they approached us,” recalls Carango. “They acted as ambassadors for the county and the city.”

BARNHILL CONTRACTING COMPANY

A family-owned business originally headquartered in Edgecombe County and now in Rocky Mount, Barnhill Contracting Company has spent 75 years serving North Carolina and the Southeastern region of the USA. Built on a history of high-quality highway and infrastructure construction services, Barnhill Contracting currently employs 1,800 partners and has expanded operations into commercial building.

“Being a family of builders, we believe in creating solutions that enable our partners to succeed, our communities to thrive, and our employees to grow-a value-based organization. Our people are powerful innovators and when the going gets tough, we get tougher. We turn passion into promise. Simply put, we are in the business of building trust.” Rob Barnhill, president, Barnhill Contracting Company.

LS CABLE & SYSTEM U.S.A.

LS Cable & System U.S.A. is a leading United States manufacturer and supplier of energy wire and cable products for the Industrial, Renewable Energy, and Utility markets. Headquartered in Peachtree Comers, Georgia, the company has operated in the Town of Tarboro, Edgecombe County, North Carolina since 2012. LS Cable & System U.S.A. and its sister industry, LS Tractor U.S.A., are divisions of Korean based company, LS Cable & System, which works across state and foreign borders.

“We have a long history in Edgecombe County and are proud members of the community. We selected this region because of the very friendly business atmosphere, the partnership spirit and the dedication to supporting the needs of all businesses, especially those with international roots,” said Van Smith, human resources director of the Tarboro plant.