Print ArticleJacksonville's manufacturing scene is a Florida anomaly. Here's a list a few products being produced locally that you may find surprising.
4. Heinz Portion Control
Heinz was founded by Henry Heinz way back in 1869. He and a friend, Clarence Noble, were packaging horseradish on a small scale and selling it in Pennsylvania. Not even ten years later, the company would go bankrupt though. The Heinz family didn’t give up, though. Henry partnered up with his brother John, and cousin Fredrick, and began the company F & J Heinz. One of the company’s first products was their now-famous tomato ketchup. 
courtesy of the NY Daily News
They were back on their feet; the company getting bigger and better this time. By 1888, Henry bought out his two partners, changing the name of the company to H.J. Heinz. Their slogan “57 varieties” came about 10 years later, when Heinz decided to mimic a sign design he had seen in NYC advertising 21 styles of shoes. He chose 57 at random.
Today, Heinz manufactures thousands of food products in 6 continents and more than 200 countries. They also claim to have 150 number-one and number-two products ranked worldwide. They have a factory here in Jacksonville, which helps produce their portion control products. This factory opened up in 1997, originally under the name “Portion Pac,” before becoming a subsidiary of the Heinz Company. Their facility is over 100,000 square feet, where they produce things like the small little ketchup packets, mustard packets, dressings, and jams that you see in restaurants and hotels. 
The Heinz building is located at 7500 Forshee Drive.
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