A new slab and slit machine allows the McMinnville company to produce bars that are high in particulates such as whole nuts. It also bathes the snack bars in chocolate or puts the stripes on strudel snacks.

Submitted photo

Assembly line workers in Betty Lou’s plant in McMinnville place packaged snacks into containers to be shipped to retailers.

Marcus Larson / News-Register

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Mothers are inventors out of necessity. So Betty Lou Carrier never imagined the sugar-free snacks she created for her kids more than 30 years ago would eventually provide the foundation for a company with an international client list.

Carrier is president of Betty Lou’s Inc., maker of the locally renowned snack Betty Lou’s Smackers. Son John Sizemore serves as vice president of sales and son Fred Brayton serves as facilities manager.

The trio just oversaw a second major expansion of the business, with the acquisition of a new state-of-the-art slab and slit machine. Made in Germany and costing a “substantial amount,” it positions the company for further expansion of its production when the economy begins to recover.

The new machine is capable of processing high-particulate bars — ones that contain whole nuts or big chunks of fruit. Sizemore calls them “cool, fancy bars.”

The company had previously been limited to extruded bars, which required that all ingredients be broken up to ensure consistent size and weight.

The new machine has a built-in enrober capable of bathing bars in chocolate or striping strudel. “There’s nothing we can’t do with this machine,” Sizemore said.

Last year, Betty Lou’s purchased the former Skyline Corp. plant on Booth Bend Road for an undisclosed sum. It had been the site of manufactured home operations, so required extensive retrofitting to accommodate food processing.

The company received assistance from the McMinnville Economic Development Partnership, through Executive Director Jody Christensen, and the Oregon Economic and Community Development Department, through Tom Fox, business development officer for Yamhill, Marion and Polk counties.

The department offered technical assistance “from the bottom up,” Fox said. The package included a grant from the Oregon Manufacturing Extension Partnership to fund participation in lean manufacturing classes.

The assisting agencies are banking that in an improved economic climate, Betty Lou’s will expand its production and increase its workforce. For the time being, however, company officials are happy just to be holding on to their 75 existing workers.

The company previously was housed in 32,000 square feet in the Granary District, off Fifth Street in downtown McMinnville. When it was obvious the company needed more space, Carrier said she was delighted to find a suitable location in McMinnville.

Betty Lou’s produces an extensive variety of all-organic, all-natural, corn-free, dairy-free, low-fat, low-carb, vegan, wheat-free, kosher and soy-free snack items. Carrier said the driver in that has been the company’s in-house research and development lab, led by Susan Jeffries.

Jeffries earned a bachelor’s degree in food science at Brigham Young University. She has been with the company for five years.

She is assisted by twin sisters Krista and Lisa Shepard, who signed on last year. They hold nutritional science degrees from Texas A&M University.

Many of the company’s customers have allergies or sensitivities to traditional snack ingredients. The lab has responded by developing products that work for people with gluten, sugar, soy or dairy intolerances.

“When a new product is being developed, we always keep the customer in mind,” Jeffries said. “We never use ingredients that we wouldn’t feed our own families. We don’t use genetically modified foods, refined sugars or any oils with trans fats.”

“In addition to our own product line, Betty Lou’s Inc. processes privately labeled products for other clients. These clients may be doctors, fitness experts or moms cooking in their kitchens,” she said.

“What they all have in common is their genuine desire to bring new, healthy choices to the market. In the R&D lab, we create formulas that bring our client’s dreams for their products into fruition, and working with these clients is one of the best parts of our job.”

As well as doing formulation work, the lab staff researches new, innovative ingredients and works with the quality control department to ensure that all new ingredients and recipes are safe and healthy. It also works with an organic certifier to certify new organic products, supervise production of new products, investigate production challenges and develop nutrition labeling.
In order to retain its organic certification, Betty Lou’s must undergo periodic inspection by the National Sanitation Foundation. The company scored 97 percent on its latest inspection — the highest rating NSF has ever given.

Carrier’s passion for health is actually how she got started. It led her to start making healthy treats in her kitchen for her two boys.

Products include the traditional Betty Lou’s Smackers — nut balls and fruit bars in a variety of flavors. Locally, they may be found at Roth’s, Harvest Fresh, Union Block, Hillside Retirement Community, Incahoots, Mario’s Gym, Excell Fitness, Parkway Health Foods, Ponie Espresso and Robert’s Shell.