Butterball cuts production, jobs at Longmont

Butterball has announced that it will reduce turkey placement and slaughter operations at its Longmont processing plant, cutting more than 200 jobs at the facility.

The decision is in response to the crisis that the U.S. animal agriculture industry is facing due to soaring feed-ingredient costs, according to a release from the company.

The increased costs, the release said, have resulted from government policies that mandate ethanol production as a part of the Renewable Fuel Standards. In the past year, Butterball’s feed costs have increased by $200 million and by more than $300 million in the last two years.

“Reducing placement and slaughter operations at the Longmont facility is, sadly, the most economically viable measure our company can take,” said Keith Shoemaker, Butterball CEO.

“We have made every effort to improve our operational practices, even with that, this is necessary in order to continue the operation of one of the country’s most cherished brands. Congress and the administration have been cautioned since at least 2005 that consequences such a plant reductions, closings, higher unemployment and higher food costs would result from our nation’s current renewable fuels policy,” Shoemaker said in the release.

Butterball’s actions are part of an operational strategy to curtail losses amid record-high costs for corn, soybean meal and other feed ingredients. The changes will result in the loss of some 210 jobs at Longmont and Butterball growout operations. The impact on the surrounding community and associated industries is undetermined at this time.