San Francisco, CA — Diamond Foods, Inc. is planning an $8.4 million expansion of its production facility in Salem, OR, to meet increased demand for its Kettle brand potato chips, according to the company.

The expansion will facilitate broader distribution of Kettle products on the West Coast and in the Southwest, and will increase production capacity by some 25 percent, the company says.

Groundbreaking is scheduled for the third quarter of 2010 and completion is anticipated by the second quarter of 2011, according to Diamond.