The Lake Mills Town Board in Lake Mills, Wisconsin, approved an under-the-road permit for Daybreak Foods, but failed to reach an agreement on allowing the egg company the permit needed for an over-the-road feed conveyor.
The plans for both permits were earlier approved by the planning commission, but only the under-the-road permits, which are for water, wastewater and communication lines, were approved by the town board.
The conveyor, according to a report from the Watertown Daily Times, would be about 35 feet above ground, and would be supported by towers on each side of the road.
Daybreak Foods Capital Projects Manager Rick Roedl told the board other options for sending feed across the road from the feed mill to the layer houses would be trucking, or an underground transport system. He said the conveyor would run about 12 hours a day during weekdays, and would be almost as quiet as a kitchen refrigerator. It would also mean less wear and tear on the roads than to truck it from one facility to the other. The company has also offered for the reconstruction of the road and do any bonding the township would want.
Town Engineer said underground permits were common, but “there are a lot more details about what can and can’t happen for an over-the-road facility like the one being requested by Daybreak Foods.
The Lake Mills Town Board will discuss the matter again at a special meeting on September 19.
Daybreak Foods, which is also headquartered in Lake Mills, is the fifth largest egg company in the United States, with 14 million hens, according to the February issue of Egg Industry. It is a privately held company and is involved in the production of both shell eggs and egg products. Daybreak Foods is also the ninth largest egg company in the world.
