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Sanderson Farms picks location for next plant
Story Date: 2/15/2013
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Source: Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINGPLACE, 2/15/13
Laurel, Miss.-based Sanderson Farms Chairman and CEO Joe Sanderson Jr. announced the company has chosen Palestine, Texas as the location for its next big bird deboning complex, which will include a feed mill, hatchery, poultry processing plant and waste water facility.
"Construction of the new facility remains on hold until we have better visibility on future prices and availability of grain, and is subject to other contingencies including obtaining necessary permits, negotiating construction contracts, completing construction and obtaining board approval to move forward with the project," Sanderson explained at the company’s annual meeting on Thursday.
Sanderson Farms will invest approximately $92 million in the construction of the hatchery and processing plant that will be located in Anderson County and an additional $32 million on the feed mill in Freestone County. Once the hatchery and processing plant are open, the company expects to employ up to 1,000 people, according to a statement issued by the Palestine Economic Development Corporation.
The announcement comes three months after Sanderson Farms pulled plans to locate the complex in Nash County, N.C., where local opponents had mounted a campaign against the project.
Sanderson said the new facility in Palestine would complement the company's existing operations located in Bryan and Waco, Texas.
"The state of Texas has been an outstanding place for Sanderson Farms to do business. We look forward to the new marketing opportunities the new facility will create for us in this important region,” said Sanderson.
Cautious optimism
"As we look to the year ahead, we are cautiously optimistic that the national economic recovery is beginning to gain traction. At the same time, we see challenges ahead for our industry with expected higher grain costs,” Sanderson said. “We also do not expect to see a meaningful improvement in demand from our food service customers until the national employment situation improves and consumers begin to dine out again on a consistent basis.”
That said, Sanderson noted he would continue to manage the company for the long term.
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