March 24, 2004

Perdue Farms To Expand North Carolina Poultry Plant

Perdue Farms plans to invest $14.2 million and add 150 new jobs at its Concord, North Carolina processing plant, according to Cabarrus County officials who were quoted in a Salisbury (North Carolina) Post newspaper article. The Salisbury, Maryland-headquartered company will qualify for $321,000 in incentives, which the Concord City Council and Cabarrus County commissioners approved previously.

The expansion of the Concord broiler processing plant involves adding a new production line and a 20,000-square-foot freezer, the Salisbury Post article said. The company previously said it would pay the additional full-time workers $11 per hour. "Cabarrus County is weathering a terrific economic storm, but these new jobs are a clear indication that we are on the rebound," county commission chairman Robert Freeman said in a joint press release with Concord mayor Scott Padgett.

Freeman noted that Perdue Farms was one of four industrial projects recently approved for the county's industrial grants. Perdue operates hatcheries, feed mills, live production, breeder operations, and processing plants that produce more than 48 million pounds of chicken products and nearly 4 million pounds of turkey products each week. "Perdue Farms is an outstanding corporate citizen, and we're delighted that they've decided to make this investment in our community," Padgett said in the press release. "It is the highest compliment when a valued local company chooses to grow in Concord when other communities are as eager to lure them away as we are to keep them here. We are glad Perdue Farms is here and is growing here."

"This is a win-win announcement," Perdue Farms plant manager Kevin Ray said in the Salisbury Post article. "We've had a great experience with our workforce in Concord and the community has been very supportive. We're pleased that the company has decided to expand our operations here."