Tyson to close Perry, Iowa, pork plant
Tyson Foods, Springdale, Arkansas, has announced it plans to shutter an Iowa plant and realign production.
The Perry, Iowa, plant, which is about 40 miles northwest of Des Moines, Iowa, employs 1,200 workers. The plant will close in June, according to several media outlets.
“After careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to permanently close our Perry, Iowa, pork facility,” according to a company spokesman. “We understand the impact of this decision on our team members and the local community. Taking care of our team members is our top priority, and we encourage them to apply for other open roles within the company.
“We are also working closely with state and local officials to provide additional resources to those who are impacted. While this decision was not easy, it emphasizes our focus to optimize the efficiency of our operations to best serve our customers.”
Over 9,000 workers in Iowa
Iowa remains a key state for Tyson Foods, with employment of more than 9,000 team members across other Iowa facilities, the spokesman stated.
In its February first-quarter report, Tyson noted the U.S. Department of Agriculture projects domestic protein production will increase approximately 2% in fiscal 2024 as compared to fiscal 2023.
“We anticipate adjusted operating income of breakeven to $100 million in fiscal 2024,” the report stated.
Pork fourth in revenues
Pork is No. 4 in the company’s revenues, and in 2024, in the first quarter, it reported $1.517 billion for 2024. The other segments are beef, $5.023 billion, chicken, $4.033 billion; and prepared food, $2.543 billion.
Overall, Tyson reports sales of $13.319 billion in the first quarter, which is defined as ending Dec. 31, 2023.
“Our team executed well in the quarter and delivered tangible results, including our third sequential quarter of adjusted operating income growth,” said Donnie King, president and CEO, Tyson Foods. “We saw the benefits of our diverse protein portfolio and realization of operational efficiencies from the strategic decisions we made in the past year.”
“Although we still have work to do, I am pleased with our first-quarter results and am confident we are on the right path to deliver long-term shareholder value,” King said. “Going forward, we will continue to prioritize our liquidity and financial health, our focus on operational excellence and our relentless pursuit to win with customers and consumers.”
Tyson has realigned its operations in recent years, including the closing of two chicken plants.
Dave Bergmeier can be reached at 620-227-1822 or [email protected].
