A Sussex manufacturing company is now running a round-the-clock operation to keep up with demand for the products it’s creating and exporting to the United States.

Sylvia McVey, the president and chief executive officer of G.E. Barbour’s, says a $1 million dollar investment in a second roaster and other equipment has allowed the company to increase its production and produce more private label nut butters for customers in the United States.

Bags of peanuts weighing 770 kilograms are shipped in from Georgia to Barbour's nut butter plant in Sussex, N.B. (Deborah Irvine Anderson/CBC) "For the last six months we’ve been running a 24/7 operation. That’s been a big change for us," McVey said.

"It’s been challenging trying to find the people to do that. We’re constantly in hire mode, which is kind of fun."

Barbour's is one of only four nut butter manufacturers in Canada and the only one east of Montreal.

The company produces its own Barbour’s label nut butters sold in the Maritimes.

It also makes almond, peanut and hazelnut butters that are shipped to places like Colorado, Illinois and Texas.

"There have been some food safety issues in the United States in the butter industry in the past few years," McVey said.

Workers on the Barbour's peanut butter production line in Sussex, N.B. have been working around the clock to fill U.S. orders of nut butters. (Deborah Irvine Anderson/CBC) "People started looking around for people who had good reputations and good safety records. They send their auditors in, we work with them. We’ve done well."

McVey said Barbour’s will never be a low cost nut butter producer, but the small town business survives by finding niche markets for stores that want specialty nut butters like honey almond butter and crunchy peanut butter with flax seeds on their shelves.

"Part of that niche is our ability and our willingness to develop products for customers," she said.

"A huge part of the process is our food safety record. We have an extraordinary quality assurance department."