Formed in 1877 by Pietro Barilla, Barilla is number one in the pasta market in Italy, USA, Germany, Greece, Turkey, Switzerland, Norway, Austria, Belgium, Australia, and Sweden. The first U.S. Facility was built in Ames, Iowa in 1999, and in 2007, Barilla America opened its second pasta-making and distribution facility in the U.S. in Avon, NY. The facility began construction in 2006 in the Livingston Industrial Complex in Avon, NY, on a 49-acre parcel. The pasta plant and related raw material storage building cover an area of approximately 310,000 square feet. Since its opening, Barilla has brought nearly 150 jobs to Livingston County, and the facility was voted 2008 Plant of the Year by Food Engineering Magazine. The Livingston County IDA assisted in the form of a payment instead of a tax agreement, sales tax exemption, and mortgage recording exemption.