"The Spirit of St. Louis Award recognizes excellence in business – and so it is fitting that we are giving the Spirit Award to Arcobasso Foods, a company that has been achieving excellence from the day it was founded 15 years ago," Mayor Slay said. "Your success here has shown that North St. Louis – and the City of St. Louis in general – is a great place to do business, and we are very proud that you call this city home."

Arcobasso Foods received the award for building a new $2 million, 17,000-square-foot manufacturing building and refrigeration unit at 8014 N. Broadway, the company's place of business since 1987. "Off and on over the past 15 years it has been suggested by different people that we move to a ‘better' location. Well, this day is evidence to them that they were wrong. We are humbled by our success and honored to be a member of this community," said Tom Newsham, president of Arcobasso Foods.

Arcobasso Foods produces 5,000 gallons a day of salad dressings, sauces, and marinades such as Arcobasso's Creamy Italian dressing and products for local restaurants including Kemoll's, Zia's, Bandana's Barbeque, and Tucker's Place. The company also manufactures dressings for restaurants in Kansas City, Jacksonville, IL, and Kimmswick.

Arcobasso Foods' expansion project was assisted by the St. Louis Local Development Company (LDC), which provides low-interest loans to small businesses seeking to locate or expand in the City.

The Mayor's Spirit of St. Louis Award recognizes businesses that exemplify the St. Louis spirit of boldness, innovation and community pride.

After presenting the award, Mayor Slay rolled out production of some of the company's bottled dressings.

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