InTucker Magazine

Business of the Month – ThermoPac

One of the most important businesses in Tucker is one that you most likely have never heard of. Thermo Pac packages food for the U.S. military, hurricane victims and food insecure families. Products like jellies, ketchup, sauces and nuts are processed in the Thermo Pac factory off Lewis Road and distributed across the nation and around the world.

“We have been here in Tucker since the very start,” Thermo Pac Director of Operations Vic Ortega says of the company’s founding nearly 30 years ago. “Safety is our number one concern. Keeping our employees safe and our customers happy.”

Visitors to the plant go through a rigorous safety and cleanliness routine including handwashing, shoe sanitizing, wearing safety goggles, masks, hairnets and earplugs. The creations du jour are no secret as, on this day, the plant smells of sweet fruit smoothies and fresh garden salsa. Those, along with individual servings of butter, are being packed up by Thermo Pac’s loyal longtime staff.

“The main reason we are still here in Tucker is our workforce,” Ortega explains. “We are very fortunate to have the majority of our workforce here for 20-25 years.”

Like any business, Thermo Pac had to adapt to manufacturing during the coronavirus pandemic. Ortega says that, in addition to more widespread use of masks, they had to implement temperature checks for staff and visitors, as well as social distancing along their manufacturing lines. They’ve made those changes and business is still booming; in September they shipped 4.5 million cases of food supplies to their distribution chain.

You can learn more about Thermo Pac on their website www.ameriqualgroup.com/thermopac.