An expansion in 2008 raised daily flour milling capacity of the Saginaw mill to 14,000 cwts from 6,000 cwts.  Miller Milling will be raising capacity to 24,000 cwts.

BLOOMINGTON, MINN. – Miller Milling Co. has announced it is expanding daily production capacity at its Saginaw, Texas, flour mill to 24,000 cwts. The project, which has just begun, will include construction of a new milling unit with 10,000 cwts.

In addition to the new milling capacity, the project will entail necessary infrastructure for grain handling, packaging, storage and load-out capabilities.

“The project also lays the groundwork to meet future flour demand across the region,” the company said. The addition will add 70% to capacity of the Saginaw mill and will make the facility Miller Milling’s second largest flour mill (Winchester, Va., mill has 26,500 cwts of daily capacity). According to the Grain & Milling Annual, the mill will be the second largest of nine mills in Texas. The only larger mill is the Ardent Mills flour mill, also in Saginaw (in the Dallas-Fort Worth area), with 26,000 cwts of daily milling capacity.

Jeffrey Thomas, Miller Milling vice-president of operations

“This expansion will let us better serve our existing customers and attract new ones,” said Jeffrey Thomas, vice-president of operations at Miller Milling. “Texas is one of the fastest growing areas of the country, and population growth means increased demand for flour. Increasing production capacity close to customers, distributors and consumers is good for our customers.”

Miller Milling said local wheat will be ground at the Saginaw mill and that the project is expected to be completed by early 2019. Mr. Thomas said the expansion will include a doubling of the facility’s packaging capacity and warehouse space, giving Miller Milling room to “grow with its existing customer base” and to meet demand for packaged flour.

Established in 1985, Miller Milling for many years specialized in durum milling before expanding into hard wheat. In 2012, the company was acquired by Nisshin Seifun Group of Japan. At the time, Miller Milling operated flour mills in Winchester and Fresno, Calif. Two years later, Miller Milling acquired four flour mills divested as part of the creation of Ardent Mills L.L.C. In addition to Saginaw, the divested mills are located in Commerce and Oakland, Calif.; and New Prague, Minn. The expansion of the Saginaw mill will raise aggregate daily milling capacity of Miller Milling to 104,600 cwts.

Built in 1999, the Saginaw mill is one of the newer flour mills in the United States. But the facility has had numerous owners in its 17-year history. Originally a partnership of Farmland Industries, Inc.; Bay State Milling Co. and an Oklahoma regional cooperative, the mill was acquired a few years later by ConAgra Mills.  In 2008, ConAgra expanded capacity of the mill to 14,000 cwts from 6,000 cwts.