ABERDEEN, S.D. – More than $7 million in mechanic's liens have been filed against the Northern Beef Packers plant under construction south of Aberdeen, according to The Associated Press. On Feb. 17, a seventh lien was filed in the Brown County Courthouse.

All the liens are still pending, county officials said. The largest are $2.1 million to a Huron company for dirt work; $1.75 million to an Omaha, Neb., company for materials, installation and labor; and just under $1 million to a Fargo, N.D., firm for a pre-engineered steel structure and other work.

The $40 million plant is being designed to process 1,500 head of cattle per day and employ about 650 people, according to backers of the facility. The beef plant's opening has been delayed several times.

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