SAN ANTONIO – Kiolbassa Smoked Meats is celebrating its 70th year with the opening of a new production line at its facility on San Antonio’s west side. The company celebrated with family, friends and community leaders at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 17.

“Here at Kiolbassa, we make all of our products the old-fashioned way,” said Michael Kiolbassa, president and third generation Kiolbassa family member. “That means remaining true to the way my grandfather made sausage when he started our company seven decades ago – in small batches, always using premium cuts of beef and pork and the freshest ingredients. With our new line we can produce a lot more sausage, but we’re still doing it 150 lbs. at a time.”

The family owned business has been located on San Antonio’s west side since it was founded in 1949. In 2017, the company opened a second location. At the time of the expansion, President Kiolbassa insisted upon keeping the location in the same area of the city, just four blocks from the company’s original location.

“We wouldn’t be where we are today without the support of our community, specifically here on the west side,” Kiolbassa said. “We are incredibly grateful for our San Antonio home and grateful that we are able to help fuel the local economy via the addition of this new production line.”

The new production line will ultimately bring in 30 additional jobs to the company when at full capacity. Between 2014 and 2018 the employee count at the company nearly doubled.

The company has also continued to expand its distribution around the country, now selling product in all 50 states and Mexico.

“Thirty years ago, you could only find Kiolbassa in a few H-E-B stores here in town. Now, we are fortunate to be carried in H-E-B stores across Texas as well as other stores across the United States and even in Mexico,” Kiolbassa said. “We are passionate about preserving the art of handcrafted smoked meats.”