An Italian meat processing company is making its move into the American market with a roughly 64,000-square-foot production and wholesale distribution facility in Vineland, a city with historic connections to “the old country.” Rovagnati USA intends to expand the facility to about 500,000 square feet over approximately the next five years, according to testimony at a special meeting of the Vineland Planning Board.

The board took two hours Wednesday night to grind through the issues. The site plan recently was revised to significantly enlarge the proposed first phase. Members approved it largely intact on a 5-0 vote. Lois Kelley, the project planner for Rovagnati, said the company has been looking to set up in the United States because of restrictions on food imports from Europe.