Baxter Groundbreaking Ceremony Scheduled for Aug. 1

After hearing in the spring that pharmaceutical giant Baxter would be building a large bio-pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in an area that includes part of Walton County, local residents are about to see it becoming a reality.

A spokesman with the Georgia Department of Economic Development announced the groundbreaking ceremony for the new plant will take place at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 1. The plant will be located in Stanton Springs, a business park that encompases Jasper, Morgan, Newton and Walton counties. Baxter leaders and local and state public officials are in town for the big event.

“This will be the first visit by their CEO, Bob Parkinson, since before the announcement,” said Alison Tyrer, director of communications for the Georgia Department of Economic Development. Dignitaries include Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal.

Much of the excitement generated by the building of the new facility is an expected 1,500 full-time jobs it will eventually bring to Georgia. The company has pledged to invest $1 billion in the new plasma fractionation plant that reportedly will add up to 3 million liters of new capacity annually once fully functional. This will boost the company's plasma-based treatments for immune disorders, trauma and other critical conditions. In addition to the manufacturing facility, Baxter is expected to locate plasma centers in a number of other communities in Georgia.

In the original press release, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal said Baxter’s decision to locate in Georgia marked a new era in the growth of the state’s bioscience industry and would have a far-reaching impact on the economy.

“We are honored to welcome this flagship company to Georgia and proud that our state’s vast resources for the biomedical field will assist the company with the groundbreaking medical advances it is renowned for,” Deal said. “Baxter’s commitment to Georgia moves us closer to making Georgia the No. 1 state in which to do business.” 

The U.S. provides more than 50 percent of the world’s plasma supply, and Baxter is among the world’s leading producers.