CP Kelco Expands Facility to Offer More Domestic Xanthan Gum Following Tariffs Against Foreign Exporters

Hydrocolloids supplier CP Kelco (Atlanta) announced plans to expand its San Diego facility by 40% in order to increase availability of its domestically produced xanthan gum. As Nutritional Outlookreported back in January following an interview with CP Kelco, Chinese and Austrian xanthan suppliers have been underpricing their xanthan gum exports to the United States, undercutting local suppliers.

The U.S. government has now intervened, the company reports. In January, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced preliminary anti-dumping tariff margin rates against Chinese and Austrian xanthan gum manufacturers for exports to the United States. CP Kelco says this will create more demand for domestic xanthan gum supply; this is where its expanded facility will come in, the company says, noting that “these latest investments will allow us to achieve record-high production rates.”

“CP Kelco is committed to supplying xanthan gum to support the U.S. industry,” said E. Charles Bowman, the company’s vice president of marketing. “As the investigation unfolds and information [about dumping margin practices] becomes available, additional expansion plans will be considered.”