NORTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. — Edesia Global Nutrition Solutions, a nonprofit maker of nutritional supplements for children in impoverished countries, will move its operations from Providence to a plant that it will build in the Quonset Business Park.
The Quonset Development Corporation, which manages the 3,200-acre business park, announced the move on Tuesday after its board of directors voted unanimously to approve a 25-year lease for Edesia on a 10-acre parcel in the central portion of the park.
The new facility could be as large as 85,000 square feet and will house between 75 and 100 employees. It could also be expanded another 25,000 square feet to accommodate future growth of the five-year-old company that manufactures peanut-based supplements that are distributed around the world by humanitarian agencies that include UNICEF and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
With an increasing need to produce food supplements for children in countries affected by wars, famines and natural disasters, Edesia has outgrown its two buildings in Providence — a 15,000-square-foot combination office/manufacturing location on Royal Little Drive and a nearby 60,000-square-foot warehouse.
Navyn Salem, the Barrington woman who founded the nonprofit, has said that she wanted to keep Edesia in Rhode Island. After the Quonset board voted, Salem, who was at the meeting, said that the business park was attractive for two reasons. It has rail access that will allow Edesia to bring in raw materials, including peanuts, sugar and vitamins, by train.
And the lot Edesia will build on is part of Quonset’s “site-readiness” program, meaning the agency has already completed all the necessary permitting and preconstruction engineering.
“Having a location that was site-ready was critical in our decision to make the move from Providence,” said Salem, who is executive director of Edesia. “The faster we build, the more quickly we can meet the growing demands of our humanitarian partners.”
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