From field to fork

The Central City is literally feeding the world.

8th Avenue Food & Provisions ships pasta made right here in Carrington throughout the globe, to not only the U.S. and Canada, but also Korea and Central America.

8th Avenue is the new home of Dakota Growers Pasta Company, founded in 1991 as a grower-owned cooperative that began producing pasta in the Central City in 1993. The site doubled production capacity by 1996, then acquired a Minnesota facility in 1998 and Virginia facility in June 2021.

Over the past three decades through a variety of ownership transitions, 8th Avenue is now one of the largest dry pasta suppliers in the country with pasta manufacturing in Carrington, New Hope, Minn. and Winchester, Va. Carrington is vertically integrated with a durum and spring wheat mill that supplies the North Dakota and Minnesota facilities.

Officially known as 8th Avenue since October 2018, our local pasta plant is now embarking on a rebrand. New signage was installed throughout the facility this past month. Locals will start to see the 8th Avenue logo more and more, as company employees based in Carrington will be wearing new uniforms and apparel at work and out in the community.

8th Avenue produces pasta for the retail, food service and ingredient markets. While primarily a private label supplier, 8th Avenue also sells pasta in their Ronzoni®, Dreamfields® and Dakota Growers Pasta Co® brands. Ronzoni is the No. 2 pasta brand sold nationally for the 52-week period ending July 27, 2024, according to Nielsen IQ.

Carrington's plant is one of the rare places in North Dakota where a consumer can see raw commodities enter the facility and witness the entire process of turning locally-grown crops into packaged foods that are shipped across the world.

At full capacity, the Carrington operation employs 240 people in milling, manufacturing and maintenance.

Right now, their focus is to "continue to support local durum and spring wheat producers to safely convert crops into high quality, value-added pasta," said plant manager Mike Ness.

Ness was promoted to plant manager in December, succeeding Jason Jarrett, who had served as the plant manager for more than a decade. Jarrett is now the Senior Director of Pasta Operations, and he oversees production at all three of 8th Avenue's pasta facilities. Jarrett has been employed with the company since it began producing pasta in Carrington in 1993.

Ness was raised on his family farm in the Hatton/Northwood area, where they grew corn, wheat and soybeans. He obtained a degree in mechanical engineering at NDSU, and he began his tenure with the company as an engineering intern in 2004.

After completing his internship, Ness worked full-time as a project engineer. He then rose through the ranks in engineering, where he most recently held the title of Senior Manager of Engineering Maintenance and Continuous Improvement before his promotion to plant manager in December.

He lives in Carrington with his wife Cassie, a registered nurse at Foster County Public Health, and three daughters: Bailey, Leighton, and Kori. Ness celebrated 20 years with the company in May.

Ness and Jarrett are just two examples of the career advancement opportunities available at 8th Avenue. And there are many more.

According to Human Resource Coordinator Arica Trottier, 65 percent of the employees at the Carrington facility have worked at 8th Avenue for at least five years.

Youth can begin their career at 8th Avenue while still in high school, working as palletizers. Once they graduate, there are open positions for machine, press and forklift operators.

There are approximately 30 positions open right here in Carrington, in milling, manufacturing and maintenance.

Growers will also find opportunity at 8th Avenue. 8th Avenue supports local growers of durum & spring wheat by purchasing as much as possible to support the North Dakota economy.

"We believe we can continue to expand our local reach too," stated Cole Hanson, the new procurement manager based in Carrington. His role is purchasing durum and spring wheat for the mill, and he is continually seeking to establish working relationships with area growers.

Hanson is yet another North Dakota native to join the ranks of 8th Avenue. Originally from Minot, Hanson obtained his master's degree in agribusiness and applied economics from NDSU.

He started his career with 8th Avenue in May 2020, in the midst of COVID-19 restrictions.

Hanson said that from a processing standpoint ... "it's uncommon that you would see the entire process from the raw product to the finished product" in one facility. I think this is cool for producers to see."

Thanks to recent improvements at the plant, producers will experience shorter wait times and faster dump times, and a better overall experience. Hanson said the focus now is on continuing to build and maintain relationships with local growers.

Any producer interested in selling durum or spring wheat to 8th Avenue is encouraged to set up an account. They use the Bushel app and regularly open cash bids for producers to respond.

In addition to pasta, 8th Avenue produces and sells nut butter, granola, fruit and nuts. There are 10 plants under the 8th Avenue umbrella in the US, three of which produce pasta.

For more information on the career opportunities available at 8th Avenue, contact Arica Trottier at (701) 540-6152 or arica.trottier@8ave.com. View current openings and apply online at jobs.postholdings.com.