Allen Family Foods to sell poultry complex

Allen Family Foods, Inc., will be selling its bird production plant in Hurlock to a South Carolina-based poultry company on June 30.

The company said that the tentative sale to Amick Farms, LLC, includes the company's Hurlock processing plant, the Hurlock hatchery and the Delmar, Delaware feed mill. Amick will retain all employees and growers of these three facilities. All other Allen's employees and growers will remain with Allen's.

"This sale allows both companies to move forward with their strategic business plans: Allen's as a premier retail supplier of retail deli and tray pay products, and Amick as a high efficiency large bird deboner," said Bob Turley, president and CEO of Allen's.

As announced in April, Allen's has begun an expansion of its Harbeson, Delaware tray pack facility. Additionally, the company said it will expand its Cordova, Maryland processing plant and plans to increase total production in those two plants to exceed what is currently being produced in three.

''Amick Farms will continue to operate its South Carolina facility where it processes more than 1.3 million birds per week,'' said Amick President and CEO Ben Harrison.

"We are very excited about the addition of another complex to our company in order to better serve our growing customer base, especially in the Northeast. At the same time, we believe our plans for increasing production at the Hurlock facility will offer further opportunities for growers, employees and the local community," Harrison said.

The Hurlock complex currently provides jobs to more than 1,100 employees and contracts with more than 100 poultry growers in the area.