Premium poultry producer Bell & Evans began construction on a new 411,500-square-foot, Organic-Certified Chicken harvesting facility in Fredericksburg, Pennsylvania. The first precast walls were placed in July, and the facility will be operational by late 2021. The project will cost the company approximately $330 million and double its current production capacity.

A team of Mountaire employees helped people in the Lake Charles, Louisiana, area hard hit recently by Hurricane Laura. The company sent 40,000 pounds of chicken to assist Operation BBQ Relief, a non-profit group of competitive barbecue chefs that deploy to disaster areas to provide hot meals.

Foster Farms will close the main Livingston processing plant on Tuesday evening, September 1 and not resume operations until Monday evening, September 7.  During this downtime, the company will complete two rounds of deep cleaning and two rounds of COVID-19 testing covering all 1,400 plant employees. The testing program will ensure that all workers first reentering the plant on September 7 will be free of COVID-19. 

After several delays due to COVID-19, John Soules Foods, the City of Valley, and the Chambers County Development Authority (CCDA) announce that construction on the new John Soules Foods facility in Valley, Alabama, has begun.

Premium, family-owned chicken producer Bell & Evans introduces Gourmet Chicken Burgers, made from whole-muscle dark meat chicken and chunky pieces of real fruit, vegetables and natural cheeses. Bell & Evans Gourmet Chicken Burgers are sold in 6 oz. portions that are nitrogen frozen and uncooked, locking in freshness and natural flavors. Three incredible flavors are being introduced in the launch: Chicken Bacon & Sharp Cheddar, Roasted Portabella & Swiss, and Granny Smith Apple & Gouda. All three varieties are gluten-free.

New Smart Crust frozen pizza from Foster Farms is available in three varieties that will satisfy any pizza craving: Four Cheese, Uncured Pepperoni and Uncured Bacon Club. Each Smart Crust pizza cuts carbs down to 4 grams per serving while providing 25 grams of protein, because the unique crust is crafted from Foster Farms chicken breast, egg whites and cheese instead of flour.

Mountaire Farms, the country’s sixth-largest chicken processor, has dozens of $2,500 scholarships available for the children and grandchildren of employees, poultry growers, and grain producers. The deadline to apply has been extended to June 15, 2020.

Mountaire Farms is donating more than 44,000 pounds of chicken to employees at Delaware's Nanticoke Memorial Hospital in Seaford, and Peninsula Regional Medical Center in Salisbury this week. Employees will each get a 10-pound bag of fresh chicken to take home to their families.

Perdue Farms learned that an associate at its Perry, Georgia Cook Plant, who has not been to work for more than a week, has tested positive for COVID-19. They are unable to disclose additional details around this individual in accordance with privacy laws. Upon receiving this notification, the company immediately enacted its pandemic response protocols, which follow strict guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).