Pilgrim’s Pride to close 900-worker Georgia plant

Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. said Friday it will close a South Georgia poultry plant, eliminating the jobs of all 900 workers.

The layoff was part of broader cost-cutting moves announced by the Pittburg, Texas, based company, which sought bankruptcy protection in December.

The closure of the Douglas, Ga., plant compounds the state’s bleak jobs picture. Georgia’s unemployment rate soared to a record 8.6 percent in January, state officials said earlier in the week. It is projected to go higher amidst a global economic slowdown.

Pilgrim’s Pride said it will close the Douglas plant and two in other states starting in April; the three had 3,000 employees combined. The company said it will incur about $35 million in pre-tax charges but save $110 million of annual costs.

It also plans to nix contracts with 430 independent chicken farmers who supply the birds to those plants, including 140 farmers in Georgia.

The Douglas plant had been a Gold Kist Inc. facility. Pilgrim’s Pride acquired the then Atlanta-based Gold Kist in 2007 for $1.3 billion.

The company said the moves were necessary because there’s an oversupply of commodity chicken — birds that are raised to be sold on the spot market, not to a particular customer.

Pilgrim’s Pride shares fell more than four percent Friday, losing 4 pennies to close at 86 cents per share.