Thread: Wayne Farms supplies Campbells Soup, Applebees & More!

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FRIDAY, JANUARY 13, 2006

Robot chicken
in Decatur
Riley helps Wayne Farms celebrate opening of its new high-tech facility


By Eric Fleischauer
DAILY Business Writer
eric@decaturdaily.com · 340-2435

When the governor attends a ribbon cutting, most hosts probably hate to correct him in public. Etiquette notwithstanding, Paul Fribourg did just that Thursday as Wayne Farms LLC celebrated the opening of an expanded poultry-processing facility.

Gov. Bob Riley told the audience he spends lots of time trying to attract high-tech companies, but Wayne Farms' expansion was a reminder that agriculture is the state's tradition and base.

When Fribourg, chief executive officer of Wayne Farms' parent company, ContiGroup, stood up, he begged to differ.

"You mentioned high tech, governor. Go in this plant and you'll see real high tech. It's higher tech than anything I've ever seen."

The Further Processing West facility on Plugs Drive, a block from Wayne Farms' Ipsco Road facility, cost $55 million and added 152 employees.

The added payroll comes to $4.5 million annually.

When the remaining two stages are complete, Further Processing West will have 130,000 square feet and sit on 45 acres.

Wayne Farms designed most of the advanced technology Fribourg referenced to increase food safety. Although under one roof, the structure houses two self-contained plants. One deals entirely with raw poultry, the other with cooked.

The two plants have separate ventilation systems and separate work forces. The uniforms of the employees in the raw-chicken plant are a different color than those in the cooked-chicken plant.

The goal is to make sure no bacteria from raw chicken contaminates cooked meat. Raw chicken comes in one side of the structure and the cooked end product leaves from the other.

The plant is highly automated, reducing the number of human hands that touch the meat, and it has automatic cleaning systems that sterilize equipment several times a day. The floor is curved where it meets the walls to avoid the formation of puddles that could become stagnant and bacteria-infested.

"This is state of the art," said Wayne Farms CEO Elton Maddox. "This is the most technologically advanced food-processing plant in the country."

Riley attended the groundbreaking 13 months ago, and Fribourg said the poultry industry has been in tumult ever since.

"When we broke ground, chicken sales were going through the roof. The chicken world's been turned upside down since then," Fribourg said.

The twin demons that did the turning were Hurricane Katrina and avian flu.

Wayne Farms buys chickens solely from U.S. farms; no avian flu has infected any domestic poultry. The Decatur plants buy chickens almost entirely from Alabama farmers, Wayne Farms spokesman Frank Singleton said.

Fribourg said Wayne Farms growers, and most other U.S. growers, test almost every flock for signs of avian flu.

Riley said he told his staff that the scheduled ribbon cutting, so soon after the ground breaking, meant that the plant would not be finished. The expansion was not just complete, though. It's been in operation for a month.

"What you've accomplished here," Riley said just before he pinned an Alabama flag on Fribourg's lapel, "is a testament to what you can do in Alabama. ... You're continuing to expand our economy. Thank you, Wayne Farms."

Wayne Farms does not sell its chicken retail. Its customers include Campbell's Soup Co., Nestle, Applebee's International Inc. and Chick-fil-A. The new facility produces fully cooked and roasted strips; diced meat; and breaded and steamed fillets, tenders and wings.
Including the expansion, Wayne Farms has 861 employees at its Decatur facilities and five plants in Alabama. (Gov. Riley applauded loudly when he heard that.) Its Decatur operations eviscerate 140 chickens per minute and debone them at the same rate.

Singleton said the technology is advanced, but the concept is simple.

"We're Detroit in reverse. They assemble. We disassemble."

More Info!


Products
Wayne Farms LLC sells fresh, frozen, boneless, and fully cooked poultry to retail and foodservice customers worldwide. The company sells its poultry products under the brands of Wayne Farms, Dutch Quality House, and Platinum Harvest.

In addition to its own brands, the company’s poultry products can also be found packaged under the labels of Campbell Soup Company, Zatarain's, ConAgra Foods, Nestlé, Gordon Food Service and Healthy Choice brands. Although the company does not sell its products on the retail market, customers of Chick-fil-A, Jack in the Box, and Applebee's restaurants can find Wayne Farms poultry in the products that these businesses serve.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Farms

Mmmmmm, Mmmmmmm! What a delicious memory of that Chick-fil-A sandwich I had for lunch this inspires! Think I'll have a bowl of Campbell's chicken noodle for dinner! Easy Sosad! I was just kidding! (about the Campbell's anyway!)

So do they employ illegals?

Only if they have TB it seems. Uncovering the infection was disastrous!

The chicken world's been turned upside down since then," Fribourg said.

Oh wait! That's a different story isn't it?