Villa Dolce Artisan Desserts announced the grand opening of its new manufacturing facility in Glendale, Ariz. Built on eight acres, the 76,000-sq.-ft. facility will feature 18,000 sq. ft. of cold storage with room for future expansion.

Custom built from the ground up over an 18-month period, the new facility showcases four gelato lines that can create more than one million 3-gal. tubs, 15.6 million pints and 26 million ice cream sandwiches per year. In addition, the cold storage area holds approximately 1,700 pallets, or half a million gallons, of gelato.

"Mastering the perfect Italian gelato meant becoming proficient in the techniques I learned in Rome, as well as importing the best Italian equipment to create a truly authentic product," says Monte Marcaccini, founder and CEO of Villa Dolce. "But like many manufacturers of frozen desserts, there are additional challenges we must meet in order to maintain product integrity—and that's why we expanded and created this new facility."

Villa Dolce Artisan Desserts has 30 flavors of authentic Italian gelato and sorbetto made from traditional Italian recipes from Rome, Italy. The company features a collection of signature flavors called Dolce Gold that include unique flavor combinations and reserve ingredients, while its SQF-certified factory ensures that products meet global food safety standards.