LANSING, Mich. — The Michigan Pork Producers Assoc. (MPPA) and others have announced the Clemens Food Group is going to build a $255 million pork processing facility in Coldwater. This will be the first such facility to be located in the state since 1998, when Thorn Apple Valley closed its Detroit slaughterhouse.

Since then Michigan pork producers have had to send their pigs to other states to be finished and slaughtered. “Today’s announcement marks a major milestone in the history of our company and the future of pork production in the state of Michigan,” said Doug Clemens, CEO of Clemens Food Group.

“On behalf of our more than 2,000 employees, our family shareholders and our family farm partners who have joined us in this venture, we thank Governor Rick Snyder and leaders in Michigan and Coldwater Township for having the vision to see the opportunities to position the state to compete in the global pork market.”

MPPA Executive Vice President Sam Hines said the new plant means “quite a lot” to the entire Eastern Corn Belt and especially Michigan. He believes the plant will help producers get back the $1.5-$2 less they’ve been getting for pork relative to producers in the Western Corn Belt.

“This should help raise prices for hogs in the Eastern Corn Belt,” he said.

Since the Thorn Apple Valley closure, producers have been sending their pigs to west-central Indiana; others go to Illinois and sometimes even to Pennsylvania, to a Clemens Food Group facility there – and still other locales.

This raises Michigan producers’ transportation costs significantly, Hines noted. Ohio, Indiana and Michigan “should benefit by having another player in the game.”

The Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC) played a key role in helping the company come to Michigan. The Michigan Strategic Fund approved $12.5 million in Community Development Block Grants for the city of Coldwater for infrastructure improvements, according to the MEDC announcement. The money will also be used for land acquisition, workforce development and on-the-job training for the new development.

The pork processing facility will be located in Coldwater Township and is expected to generate up to $255.7 million in private investment, MEDC says. It’s also projected to generate 810 jobs, 644 of which will be supported by federal tax dollars from the block grants.

Collaboration between Coldwater and Coldwater Township on a land transfer agreement was key to the success of the project, according to the MEDC. The transfer will allow the city of Coldwater to contribute $4.5 million toward the project for infrastructure improvements at the site, including water and sewer main extensions and a new municipal electric overhead distribution line. Local and state support for the project will total $55 million.

The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) also played a role by working with the state’s pork producers for three years to evaluate the merits of bringing a processing plant to the state. These producers used a $100,000 MDARD grant to conduct a feasibility assessment for a pork processing plant in Michigan.