House of Raeford plant on schedule to reopen in 2018

Construction of a new House of Raeford poultry plant to replace one that was destroyed in February is progressing as planned, and if things continue at the current pace, the plant will be able to be in operation in the summer of 2018.

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House of Raeford Farms' poultry plant in Teachey, North Carolina, was destroyed in a February fire. | House of Raeford Farms
House of Raeford Farms' poultry plant in Teachey, North Carolina, was destroyed in a February fire. | House of Raeford Farms

Construction of a new House of Raeford Farms poultry plant to replace one that was destroyed by a fire in February is progressing as planned, and if things continue at the current pace, the plant will be able to be in operation in the summer of 2018.

The company’s poultry plant in Teachey, North Carolina, known by the company as the Wallace plant, was destroyed by a fire on February 25. Shortly after the fire occurred, the company promised that it would rebuild. Demolition of the old plant began on April 3, and in late June, House of Raeford announced that it was partnering with general contracting and construction company Fitts & Goodwin to oversee the rebuilding of the plant at the same location.

Dave Witter, corporate sustainability and communications manager for House of Raeford Farms, said that equipment for the new plant is expected to start arriving before the end of 2017.

The fire, according to investigators, is believed to have started accidentally in an office of the second floor of the building. No House of Raeford workers were hurt in the blaze, although one first responder did receive injuries. More than 30 emergency agencies responded.

House of Raeford Farms, according to the WATTAgNet Top Poultry Companies Database, is the ninth largest broiler company in the United States, having processed 27.35 million pounds of ready-to-cook chicken on a weekly basis in 2016. The company’s brands are House of Raeford Farms and Columbia Farms.

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