National media are once again focused on the Lehigh Valley, this time sharing headlines about Eli Lilly and Company breaking ground on the region’s largest investment ever. 
News organizations including MSN, Yahoo Finance, and The Associated Press, along with pharmaceutical and health publications, highlighted Lilly’s groundbreaking Nov. 12 for its $3.5 billion pharmaceutical manufacturing campus in Upper Macungie Township.
By 2031, the site will employ more than 850 high-skilled workers producing injectable medicines and devices for GLP-1 therapies that have revolutionized health care and improved the quality of life for millions of people.
“This site will be one of the most technically advanced, not just in Lilly, but in the industry,” said Lilly Chair and CEO David A. Ricks. “It will be a source of good jobs for this region, and most importantly a source for medicines made in Pennsylvania for patients here and around the world.”
The investment is projected to have a $14 billion economic impact on the Lehigh Valley through related spending. Ricks announced at the groundbreaking that Lilly will be donating up to $1 million for a Lehigh Valley health and wellness initiative.
He was joined by Gov. Josh Shapiro, Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation President & CEO Don Cunningham, and other dignitaries, their shovels full of damp soil marking a new chapter in a region long defined by what it makes.
This is the second time in recent months that Lehigh Valley, America’s No. 1 mid-sized market for economic development, has garnered such headlines. The announcement of Chobani’s $1.2 billion dairy product manufacturing operation in September also received a lot of attention.
Here are some of the initial headlines about Lilly’s groundbreaking:
The Associated Press: Lilly breaks ground in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley on a $3.5 billion site to make next-generation obesity medicines, the latest of 10 new U.S. sites since 2020
MSN: Eli Lilly breaks ground in Lehigh Valley on a $3.5 billion manufacturing site
Yahoo Finance: Eli Lilly, obesity drug manufacturer, comes to Pennsylvania
Pharmaceutical Executive: Eli Lilly Breaks Ground on $3.5 billion Pennsylvania Manufacturing Site
Contract Pharma: Lilly Breaks Ground on $3.5 Billion Lehigh Valley Facility
Construction Review: Eli Lilly Breaks Ground on $3.5B Pennsylvania Drug Manufacturing Facility
MyWeightLab: Lilly’s Pennsylvania plant: what 2031 means for retatrutide
RTTNews: Eli Lilly breaks ground in Lehigh Valley on a $3.5 billion manufacturing site
The Morning Call: Eli Lilly breaks ground on $3.5B Lehigh Valley pharmaceutical plant
Lehigh Valley Public Media: Eli Lilly pledges $1M for healthy living programs at groundbreaking for obesity-drug factory
WFMZ: Eli Lilly breaks ground on $3.5B manufacturing facility in Lehigh County
LehighValleyLive.com: Eli Lilly breaks ground on $3.5B retatrutide plant in Lehigh Valley
Lehigh Valley Business: Eli Lilly breaks ground on planned $3.5B manufacturing facility
Credence Research: Lilly Breaks Ground on $3.5 Billion Lehigh Valley Plant for Next-Generation Obesity Drugs
Securities.io: Lilly Starts Construction on $3.5 Billion Pennsylvania Obesity Plant
(Photo by LVEDC)