Philadelphia/PRNewswire -- FMC Corporation has broken ground on a new natural colors blending facility at its Newark, Del., manufacturing site. The company has natural colors production sites in Santiago, Chile and Burton, U.K., as well as U.S.-based technical expertise in Ewing, N.J. This additional location is expected to help meet growing demand in North America for highly stable, natural colors used in applications from baking to beverages, an estimated $200 million market.

"We are delighted to break ground on this blending facility that will support natural colors growth and better serve existing North American customers with on-the-ground capabilities for customization of colors applications and specialized production," says Bryan Bast, business director for FMC Health and Nutrition.

Upon completion in December 2014, the 4,800 square foot building will include new equipment for customized color solutions and additional room for future expansion.

"The addition of the Delaware production site will also enable deeper collaboration with our customers," says Bast. "The very proximity of the operation to our technical expertise at FMC's Ewing, N.J., Global Innovation Center will create new opportunity for partnership as well as efficiencies for our business that will ultimately have impact for our customers."

The FMC location in Delaware is a global leader in the production of cellulosics products for a variety of industries, including pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals and food.  Global sourcing and manufacturing strategies ensure reliable product availability and superlative batch-to-batch product consistency for customers.