California Natural Color, a division of E. & J. Gallo Winery, is expanding its Fresno footprint, adding roughly 28,000 square feet to its existing dryer and dry storage operation as food producers seek alternatives to synthetic dyes.
The expansion was announced last month, with a notice of determination filed with the state Sept. 11 under the California Environmental Quality Act.
The project will connect the company’s existing dryer building and dry storage warehouse, creating more than 46,000 square feet of combined manufacturing and storage space.
Four additional dryers are planned over the next four years, bringing the facility to five dryers. The equipment will support production of natural colors, grape seed extract and other ingredients used by food, beverage and nutraceutical manufacturers.
California Natural Color said the expansion will boost production capacity by approximately 300%, with the expanded facility expected to be fully operational by the end of 2027.
Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer toured Gallo’s Fresno winery and attended a tour and groundbreaking for the California Natural Color expansion in August.
“This expansion will turn parts of the grape into natural colors and ingredients as the food industry increasingly looks for alternatives to synthetic dyes,” Dyer wrote.
The newest project builds on an earlier California Natural Color expansion approved in 2022, which included additional tanks, silos and a dryer at the Fresno location.
The city approved the latest project June 22. Environmental documents found the expansion would not create new significant environmental impacts requiring additional review.
The project is expected to rely largely on existing facilities and infrastructure, adding approximately two inbound and two outbound truck trips per day over the next five years.
Environmental documents estimate California Natural Color currently employs about 95 people and expects to add roughly five employees through the expansion, separate from the workforce at Gallo’s larger Fresno winery operation.
In Dyer’s August post, he said the broader Gallo operation employs about 345 people in Fresno. He also said its Fresno winery expects to receive approximately 370,000 tons of grapes across numerous varieties this season — more than any other winery in the world.
