Columbia Farms’ new Comer chicken feed plant held an official ribbon-cutting and open house for county officials, community members and growers Dec. 1, welcoming folks in to see their new state-of-the-art facility. Tours of the facility, and a lunch, were also provided.
The plant began operations in September and stepped up to full production on Monday, Oct. 19, officials said.
The company, a division of House of Raeford, relocated its Lavonia feed mill to the 107-acre tract east of Comer. The plant currently employs about 30 people. At peak production, the mill should be able to produce about 6,500 tons of chicken feed per week, or more.
Madison County officials have named the plant site and the surrounding area Cooper Road Industrial Park and hope that Columbia Farms is just the first of a number of businesses who want to locate here, along the CSX railroad.
“The industrial park’s the thing,” board of commissioner chairman Anthony Dove said. “The (industrial) zoning is the main thing and we hope it’ll attract other businesses.”
Dove said the county just received approval Dec. 1 for LARP (Local Assistance Road Paving) funds from the state to pave Cooper Road. He said the county also plans to widen Sims Kidd Road to Russell Road near the plant two feet on each side and add a base.
In addition, the IDA applied for a $300,000 ARC (Appalachian Regional Commission) grant for road paving in Cooper Industrial Park earlier this year.
“Eventually, we’ll have the whole area paved,” Dove said.
“The key is that this is ‘production’ – these folks are working and producing a product here – this is a $23 million investment in Madison County. There’s not much of that kind of thing happening now.”
Industrial Authority director Marvin White said he’s “thoroughly convinced” that if business and industry don’t come into the county over the next few years, residents won’t be able to pay their property taxes.
Plant official Melvin Dutton, who has been with Columbia Farms more than 30 years, said the plant can store up to 300,000 tons of finished feed. Loads are dropped from shoots electronically into waiting tractor-trailers for shipment to farms. Corn to manufacture the feed is brought in via rail cars on the CSX line. The plant can store up to 750,000 bushels of corn in several 140 foot-high silos. The massive boiler facility produces steam to cook the chicken feed by burning wood chips, instead of natural gas, though there is a back-up natural gas generator, in case of emergency.
The plant hopes to expand production in the future.
He must of been the front man?