April 15, 2013

San Angelo Packing has recently entered an agreement to sell the company to Caviness Beef Packers.

Hereford, Texas-based Caviness Beef Packers has already started rehiring San Angelo Packing employees and plans to bring production back quickly to about 500 head of cattle per day, President Trevor Caviness, told Meatingplace. The purchase adds a second slaughter plant to Caviness operations and will bring the company's daily slaughter capacity to 2,200 per day.

"We will be getting past employees of San Angelo Packing back to work very soon," Caviness promised in an e-mailed statement. Before it closed, San Angelo Packing had about 200 plant workers.

In an interview two weeks ago with the San Angelo Standard Times, San Angelo Packing board member John Sims explained the company had closed because severe drought conditions led to a lack of livestock supply. "We could not find the cows and the numbers to keep it going," Sims said at the time.

Caviness added, "We have been in growth mode, and we have good relationships with ranchers. We believe in the resiliency of ranchers in the Southwest, and we believe in our procurement model. We can keep both plants running."

With this purchase, Caviness will own three processing locations, including harvest and fabrication operations in Hereford and San Angelo, Texas, plus a ground beef plant in Amarillo, Texas.

"From a beef marketing standpoint, we will have more volume and variety of products to offer regional foodservice and retail customers. The San Angelo Packing finished product offerings will fit nicely within our existing family of Caviness Brands," the company statement concluded.