Now that approvals from the county and state have been finalized, construction on the $43 million facility can begin. The proposed 650,000-sq.-ft. pork processing facility will have a slaughter capacity of 10,000 hogs per day once fully operational. Prestage Farms expects the new plant will be operational in the fall of 2018.
“With the initial engineering complete, we are excited to be moving into the construction phase of this project,” says Jere Null, COO of Prestage Foods of Iowa. “At the peak of construction, we expect over 600 people to be working daily at the site. After construction, we will permanently employ approximately 1000 people. We are proud to be investing and creating opportunities for the people of Wright County, the region and the State of Iowa.”
Prestage currently raises pigs in more than 30 Iowa counties. The new facility will focus on cleaning the air, reducing water and energy use. The company also plans to utilize the latest innovations in processing and automation technology.
“We are confident that we will be able to translate and apply the same commitment to quality in processing that we have to our live animal production business,” says Ron Prestage, DVM, on behalf of the Prestage family. “This is an exciting time in our industry, and an exciting time for our family business.”
Prestage Farms Inc., a multi-generational family owned and operated business started by Bill and Marsha Prestage in 1983, is based in Clinton, North Carolina, and has operations in Iowa, North Carolina, South Carolina, Mississippi, Alabama, Texas and Oklahoma.
