Walmart Dominates U.S. Refrigerated Warehousing & Distribution Construction

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Written by Eric Funderburk for IIR News Intelligence (Sugar Land, Texas)

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Summary

Some of the leading names in food and groceries are underway with significant refrigerated warehousing construction, with Walmart leading the pack.

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A Clear Leader

Walmart started selling a full range of groceries at its stores with the opening of its first Supercenter in Missouri in 1988. Since that time, it has become a leading spender in U.S. refrigerated warehousing and distribution construction.

Industrial Info Resources data show more than $12 billion worth of active construction underway for Food & Beverage warehousing and distribution projects, with billions of dollars' worth of upcoming projects planned for a future date, although not all of these will move forward.

Walmart is underway with several projects at facilities to store and ship groceries and perishables across the U.S, but eclipsing them all is the company's $1.2 billion facility being built in Belvedere, Illinois. The facility will use a very high level of automation and robotics. According to a 2025 Business Insider article, the company already incorporates a high level of artificial intelligence (AI) at many of its distribution centers, including its facility in Wellford, South Carolina, which is 98% automated according to the plant's general manager, autonomously receiving goods and shipping out ideally tailored pallets to a five-state area.

The Belvidere facility will undoubtedly incorporate the latest in sophisticated robotics and AI technologies, and at more than 1 million square feet, is set to be one of the company's prime receiving and shipping hubs in the region. The facility is around 70 miles from the heart of Chicago, with prime access to interstates 39 and 90 as well as potential rail availability.

Construction kicked off in 2023 and is expected to wrap up next year. Readers can access details of the project, including construction timelines, key contact details, and equipment and service needs, by clicking here.

The Belvidere plant is leading to other projects outside of the Food & Beverage Industry as well.

A Brief Power Industry Aside

Walmart's new Belvidere plant was named specifically as part of the reason that the company signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Constellation Energy in June this year for 176 megawatts (MW) of wholesale power produces from the relatively close Dresden Clean Energy Center, which will include 30 MW of expanded power that will come from upgrades to the plant's two reactors, expected to occur in 2028 and 2029.

Other Refrigerated Warehousing Construction

Industrial Info Resources data show at least other eight other Walmart food-related projects under construction, with plenty more set for the future. Most of Walmart's other current activity involves additions, expansions and upgrades at existing facilities.

And Walmart is certainly not the only food company underway with distribution facilities. Some of the most recognizable names in the food and grocery game, including Kraft Heinz, Trader Joe's and ALDI, are underway with construction of substantial refrigerated warehousing and distribution facilities, as are other, more regional players.

One of the largest such projects broke ground earlier this year in Burlington, North Carolina, where Ahold Delhaize USAFood Lion grocery chain and other brands, in a joint venture with transport and logistics companies, is building a 1 million-plus-square foot refrigerated facility that, like the Walmart facility, will be highly automated.

Highly automated facilities at a big scale also are underway from grocery chain ALDI in New Castle, Delaware, at a new 1.1 million-square-foot refrigerated warehousing and distribution facility, and at Kraft Heinz's upcoming facility in De Kalb, Illinois, about 25 miles from Walmart's Belvidere facility. These plants are intended to serve large areas and several stores. ALDI claims its Connecticut facility is the most investment it has ever made in a distribution center. It may be a much-needed piece of infrastructure as the grocery chain has announced plans to open 800 new U.S. locations by 2028, including 225 this year, according to Food Trade News.

Similarly, Kraft Heinz says its new facility will feature a 24/7 automated storage and retrieval system that can handle twice the volume of goods, and the 775,000-square-foot plant is expected to serve as a distribution hub for more than 60% of its foodservice business and 30% of all dry goods, according to the company. Kraft Heinz's new facility is expected to be completed next year, while ALDI's Connecticut distribution center will follow in 2030.

Trader Joe's is making a similarly sized investment as Kraft Heinz is in the De Kalb plant for a new facility in Long Island, New York, but the upcoming facility's distribution scope is much tighter, focusing on Trader Joe's stores in the Long Island and New York metropolitan area. The facility will feature more than 125,000 square feet of dedicated freezer space, along with 756,000 square feet of other warehousing space and a maintenance building. Progressive Grocer notes 13 Trader Joe's stores on Long Island, including seven in Nassau and Suffolk counties, and three each in the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, both on Long Island.

Key Takeaways

• Refrigerated warehousing and distribution construction means big spending throughout the U.S.
• Walmart heads the pack in investments, with its new automated facility in Belvidere, New York, requiring $1.2 billion in investment.
• Automation is the name of the game in new construction, with robotics and AI technologies allowing for more efficient storage and delivery processing.

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About Industrial Info Resources
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, Industrial Info Resources is tracking over 250,000 current and future projects worth $30.2 trillion (USD).