Kettle coming to a boil as soup company prepares for Lynn grand opening

LYNN – Soup?s already simmering in Lynnway-based Kettle Cuisine and a company representative said the firm?s grand opening, including a plant tour, is a month or so away.?We?re hoping for October,” said Jessica Stasinos, executive assistant to chief executive officer Joseph Rainert.Kettle Cuisine is bringing 100 new jobs to Lynn and the former Chelsea firm spent $20 million building and equipping its Lynn plants.?They are good paying jobs. We were one of 13 communities competing for their business after they outgrew Chelsea,” said Economic Development and Industrial Corporation Director James Cowdell.Stasinos said initial plans for a grand opening next week were postponed because “soup season came a little earlier” and the Lynnway plant needs to run at full capacity with all workers on the job during this month.The company?s 150 kinds of soups, as well as sauces and oatmeal, account for 60 percent of Kettle Cuisine?s production volume sold to the food services industry for use in restaurants with the remaining 40 percent sold to retailers that sell cup-size soup servings.Kettle Cuisine?s operation is already visible just past 330 Lynnway where the company built a 72,000 square foot, two-story corporate headquarters and production building next to 130,000 square feet of commercially refrigerated production space owned by Lynnway businessman Arthur Papathanasi.The soup factory features a two-story entrance foyer with reception area and corporate offices on the second floor. Employee work preparation and relaxation areas are on the first floor along with a “development kitchen” where Kettle Cuisine employees will perfect and experiment with new recipes.Fresh vegetables, seafood and other ingredients that go into the company?s soup will arrive at the Lynnway plant once it opens and be stored for processing. Workers will prepare vegetables, meats, proteins and other ingredients in separate factory areas to ensure Kettle Cuisine soup meets standards required for allergy and gluten-free recipes.Even company vending machines will be peanut-free. Some of the company?s soups simmer in 400-gallon vats with the production process divided between low risk and high care work depending on sterilization requirements for the type of soup being made.Workers wear special clothing to ensure sanitary work conditions and “positive air flow” will be maintained throughout the plant to ensure potentially contaminated outside air does not enter production areas.