Nestle Loses $21 Million Tax Reduction Bid in Anderson

Daniel BurkePublished every day

The Indiana Tax Court affirmed Madison County's $55 million assessment of Nestle USA's Anderson coffee creamer plant on September 23rd, rejecting Nestle's six-year appeal for tax years 2018 through 2023 and the $21 million reduction the company wanted. Nestle made capital improvements to the facility, and under Indiana's now-repealed burden-shifting statute, that improvement triggered the assessment increase and put the burden on Nestle to disprove the county's number. Nestle could not.

That statute no longer governs new assessments, but if you have an open appeal on a tax year the old statute still covers, this ruling tells you the county can win simply by making you carry that burden. Your documentation needs to stand on its own. Nestle has until approximately October 23rd to petition the Indiana Supreme Court, so the case is not closed.

Impact

The assessor's winning argument was that Nestle's own capital improvements to the facility triggered the assessment increase, which under the old statute shifted the burden onto Nestle to disprove the higher value, meaning a manufacturer's reinvestment in an aging plant can simultaneously raise its assessed value and weaken its legal position to fight that value. It's also a rare case of a small county (with zero outside attorney fees) beating a Fortune 500 multinational at both the administrative and appellate level, giving other Indiana assessors a precedent to cite against pending appeals from large manufacturers.

Watch

Whether Nestle petitions the Indiana Supreme Court within its 30-day window, running through roughly Oct. 23, 2026.

For the huddle

If I have an open property tax appeal in Indiana, does the Nestle ruling affect me?

Only if your appeal covers tax years still governed by Indiana's now-repealed burden-shifting statute, in which case the county can win by making you disprove its assessed value, so your documentation needs to stand on its own.

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