Local meal prep chain Hummus Fit plans $19 million production facility in Islandia

Local health food preparation chain Hummus Fit is planning to open a $19 million production facility in Islandia, Islip Town officials announced Wednesday, signaling growing interest from Long Island households in ready-made meals.

Islip Town granted preliminary approval on Tuesday for tax breaks to aid in the acquisition and development of the 4.06-acre property at 1800 Motor Pkwy. in Islandia. The roughly 54,000-square-foot building will become a hub for the “manufacturing, packing and distribution of prepared food meals and products” for the Ronkonkoma-based chain, according to town records.

The food service company, which caters to multiple diets — including vegan, keto and low carb — has more than a dozen locations across Long Island and ships across the country.

“This investment will bring good jobs to our residents, strengthen our local economy, and keep a thriving company right here in our community," Islip Supervisor Angie Carpenter said in a news release.

The company would save a total of more than $500,000 through different tax breaks over the course of a decade, said John Walser, executive director of the Town of Islip Industrial Development Agency.

"What we try to do is help businesses that are growing to continue to grow. This is an opportunity to have a relocation and expansion of their production facility so they can service their growing number of retail locations. In exchange for the capital investment and job creation they are providing, we are happy to do that," he said.

The facility will create 50 full-time and 22 part-time jobs, according to a town news release, which noted that Hummus Fit already “employs 55 full-time and 22 part-time workers.”

The owners of Hummus Fit did not immediately respond to interview requests.

The rapidly expanding chain, which was founded in 2015, signals a growing food industry fueled by an increased use of GLP-1 weight loss drugs, said Ben Tannenbaum, vice president of nightlife company LineLeap and the author of a weekly newsletter on the evolving culture surrounding food and drinks.

Prioritizing high-protein foods, like many of the products offered by Hummus Fit, is “one of the biggest trends we’re seeing right now, not just with meal kits or prepared foods, but in general, across all foods, and that’s both on the shelf and in restaurants,” he said.

More than 60% of consumers increased the amount of protein they ate in 2024, according to a report last year from food and agriculture company Cargill.

Dietitian Eleana Kaidanian, owner of group nutrition practice Long Island Nutritionist, highlighted the importance of eating a balanced diet, especially for people on GLP-1s, whose appetites are suppressed.

“While the appetite is reduced, satiety is achieved quicker and overall [food] intake is less on a daily basis. That means prioritizing every bite with nutrient dense foods,” she said in an email.

Meeting daily protein requirements can help those on GLP-1s reduce the breakdown of muscles for energy and increase fat loss, she noted. “It is highly encouraged for those on a GLP-1 to receive dietary guidance and support from a registered dietitian to ensure they are meeting their needs," she added.

Besides the growing use of weight loss drugs, Tannenbaum said the meal prep industry also has been growing because people in general have less free time and many “want dinner to be just one less thing that they have to think about.”

The global prepared meals market is worth billions of dollars. Valued at $190.71 billion in 2025, the industry is expected to grow to $326.5 billion by 2034, according to Fortune Business Insights.

Especially as a car-dependent suburb with a lot of high-income households, “Long Island is a pretty good textbook market for this,” Tannenbaum said. “Anywhere on Long Island takes a little bit of planning and that same sort of planning overhead applies to dinner.”

By Brianne Ledda

brianne.ledda@newsday.com@brianne_ledda

Brianne Ledda covers personal finance and affordability for Newsday. She previously covered Southold and Greenport for The Suffolk Times and is a graduate of Stony Brook University.