Home Randy Forbes: Did you know these things were produced in Virginia’s Fourth District?
Local

Randy Forbes: Did you know these things were produced in Virginia’s Fourth District?

Contributors

randy forbesRight here in Virginia’s Fourth District, there are companies on the front lines positioning our nation to compete in an increasingly global society. Our manufacturing industry is made of hubs of innovation that – although perhaps small in their building footprint – are big in their reach and impact on economic growth, job creation, and global competitiveness.

Take a look at some of the items made right here in Virginia’s Fourth District:

World Cup cups. Soccer fans will appreciate the honor Chesapeake-based paper company, Yupo Corporation, was given when it was asked to provide the special synthetic paper used to develop souvenir cups provided to fans at the World Cup last year. Yupo provided enough paper to cover about 47 soccer fields, which was turned into thousands of cups decorated for individual matches.

Hummus. Sabra Dipping Co. in Chesterfield produces hummus, a traditional Middle Eastern food spread made from chickpeas and tahini. Each month, they produce 8,000 tons of hummus shipped all over the United States.

The active ingredients in shampoo and shower gels. You know those active ingredients you see listed on the label of your shampoo or shower gel? Evonik, based in Hopewell, Virginia, produces that material, called amphoteric surfactants, used in shampoos and shower gels.

Coffee K-Cups. The next time you pop a Keurig K-cup in a Keurig at work, at home, or at a friend’s house, you can thank your neighbors at Keurig Green Mountain in Virginia’s Fourth District.  The Keurig Green Mountain Coffee Roasters plant in Isle of Wight produces 1 million single-serve cups of coffee a week in over 30 different brand names.

The absorbent material found in diapers.  Parents and care providers will appreciate the work at International Paper in Franklin. They produce the material, called fluff pulp, used in disposable diapers.

Materials used by first responders. In Chesterfield, DuPont Spruance manufactures new films, fibers, and specialty chemicals – many of which are used by our first responders, police, and firefighters. One material they produce is called “Kevlar®” and it is, pound for pound, five times stronger than steel and resistant to chemicals, punctures, water, and flame.

Those are just a few of the amazing products made in Virginia’s Fourth District every week. For each of those, there are a host of other manufacturing companies making products that you and I use regularly, and many more that are making products that aid in national defense, medicine, and other critical sectors. As their representative in Congress, I am proud of the innovative work they do.

Our manufacturing base is a powerful foundation in our national economy.  It accounts for 12 percent of our total economy, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Taken on its own, manufacturing in the United States would be the 9th largest economy in the world. It drives more research and development than any other sector in the United States.

As manufacturing grows, it spurs job creation and innovation in other industries through a multiplier effect. In fact, every dollar the manufacturing industry spends to produce a product supports $1.34 back into our economy through other sectors. In Virginia’s Fourth District alone, our manufacturing industry employs thousands of people in steady, good paying jobs. And the manufacturing industry has maintained this success even in the midst of two very difficult economic recessions in the past decade.

One of my priorities in Congress is ensuring this industry isn’t hamstrung by heavy burdens placed on it by the federal government.  We need to make sure our manufacturing facilities can remain competitive in a 21st century global marketplace. So how do we do that?

We start by creating an environment where our manufacturing base can put its dollars towards research and development, rather than tax compliance and stringent or duplicative federal regulations. We promote policies that allow manufacturers to obtain the capital they need to invest and grow. We create a network of public-private partnerships across the United States to design and test new technologies in manufacturing.  We create opportunities for American students to participate in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education to meet the increasingly complex needs in our manufacturing industry.

Our manufacturing industry is one that other nations in the world look to for guidance. Manufacturing facilities buzz with energy and excitement about the products coming off of the line. Inside, there’s less talk and more action. They build. They look for ways to grow. They work hard.

The Fourth District is a leader in the manufacturing space, and in turn we’re fueling our national economy and setting us up for global competitiveness. We have a lot to be proud about.

Randy Forbes represents Virginia’s Fourth District in Congress.

Contributors

Contributors

Have a guest column, letter to the editor, story idea or a news tip? Email editor Chris Graham at [email protected]. Subscribe to AFP podcasts on Apple PodcastsSpotifyPandora and YouTube.