Springdale City Council Approves Tyson Purchase of Shuttered Cargill Turkey Plant
According to local news outlet Talk Business & Politics, Tyson Foods has been given the go-ahead from the Springdale, Ark., city council to acquire the former Cargill turkey processing plant in town, with the approval of the issuance of revenue bonds to cover the deal.
Last week, Nathan McKay, president of the Poultry division at Tyson, discussed the company’s plans to convert the shuttered site into a chicken further-processing facility with the council, seeking support of the industrial revenue bonds. Tyson already runs a chicken slaughter facility nearby the site and would not slaughter birds at the renovated site.
According to the TB&P report, the council approved the bonds, which will allow Tyson to purchase the facility, then transfer the property to the city in exchange for funds from the bond, the report noted. Tyson would lease the land from the city and would benefit from a property-tax exemption on the site, in lieu of repaying the debt incurred from the revenue bonds.
The cost to renovate the facility was projected to be in the vicinity of $127 million, and Tyson estimates some 200 employees will be needed to run the plant.
About the Author
Andy Hanacek
Senior Editor
Andy Hanacek has covered meat, poultry, bakery and snack foods as a B2B editor for nearly 20 years, and has toured hundreds of processing plants and food companies, sharing stories of innovation and technological advancement throughout the food supply chain. In 2018, he won a Folio:Eddie Award for his unique "From the Editor's Desk" video blogs, and he has brought home additional awards from Folio and ASBPE over the years. In addition, Hanacek led the Meat Industry Hall of Fame for several years and was vice president of communications for We R Food Safety, a food safety software and consulting company.