Tyson Foods To Shut Three Factories, Cut 950 Jobs

[FWS]

Tyson Foods to shut three factories, cut 950 jobs

Sat Jul 26, 2014



Packages of Tyson food beef meat loaf are reflected in a mirror as they sit on a refrigerator for sale at a grocery store in Encinitas, California May 29, 2014. REUTERS/Mike Blake


(Reuters) - Tyson Foods Inc (TSN.N) said it will discontinue operations at three of its factories which make processed meat products such as sausages and hot dogs, affecting about 950 people.

The largest U.S. meat processor, which won the bidding war for Hillshire Brands Co (HSH.N) in June, said the closures were not related to the acquisition.

"The closings were under consideration long before our decision to pursue Hillshire Brands", Tyson spokesman Gary Mickelson told Reuters.

Tyson outbid Pilgrim's Pride Corp (PPC.O) with its $63 per share offer for Hillshire, valuing the Jimmy Dean sausages maker at $8.55 billion.

The closures were due to changing product needs, an aging Cherokee, Iowa factory and the distance of the Buffalo, New York and Santa Teresa, New Mexico plants from their raw material supply base, the company said on Friday.

"The consolidation helps them get transportation efficiencies," Chris Hurt, an agricultural economist with Purdue University, said.

The number of beef cattle in the United States is at its lowest level in 63 years due to severe droughts, reducing the amount of meat available to process.

The Cherokee factory will close on Sep. 27, while the other two are expected to stop operating in the first half of 2015.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration had cited the Buffalo factory for workplace safety hazards last November and proposed fines of about $122,000.

Tyson contested the citations and settled the case in May, agreeing to pay $105,000 in fines.

The closures will affect 450 employees at Cherokee, 300 at Buffalo and 200 at Santa Teresa. The company had about 115,000 employees as of last September.

Shares of the company, which will report quarterly results on Monday, were little changed at $39.49 in extended trading on Friday.

[FWS]

So who are the pinheads who are too incompetent to make something as simple as a meatloaf and instead must buy pre-cooked, pre-sliced packaged "meatloaf type product" from Tyson for $8.49 for "over 1 lb.".................

Probably the same people who are buying the bags of frozen mashed potatoes I saw in Safeway. Multiple brands too..................

[PamIsMe]

Are you calling me a pinhead? lol I confess, I've tried them (not Tyson though Hormel) when in a hurry and don't feel like cooking. Sometimes I just need a break from cooking. And I hate peeling potatoes and boiling them, the microwave ones are actually tasty and certainly 4 minutes cooking time is quick. Dinner in 8 minutes works for me on occasion.

Cheers,
Pam

[trappincoyotes39]

Pam I haven't bought frozen but have bought the boxed mashed potatoes Idaho brand really cheaper than fresh potatoes and again as you say when need a quick meal the instant mashed are fairly good. Sams one can buy a big carton of dehydrated potatoes buds for cheap. water, little milk and butter and in 15 mins you have mashed potatoes on the table.


The Tyson deal is not new news for sure. My in laws live in cherokee and my father in law and others have been hearing of this closure for the last 2-3 years. The cost to redo the plant and keeping a good workforce was too much I guess for them to consider. The issue being they have a newer larger plant in storm lake Iowa just 20 mins from Cherokee. That is where any future building would take place I am guessing.

[FWS]

cheaper than fresh potatoes

Perhaps where you are, but not here............

water, little milk and butter and in 15 mins you have mashed potatoes on the table.

That's really all it takes to make mashed potatoes from scratch, I've never found peeling potatoes to be a particularly difficult or strenuous task. Boiling them takes even less effort, and the act of mashing them takes a minute or so. I can even whip them in the Kitchenaid stand mixer if the mood strikes me.



There are whole aisles full of pre-packaged processed foods I walk right past in the grocery stores on my way to procure fresh, raw ingredients.

Look at all the extras you get in..............

Tyson® Seasoned Beef Meatloaf

INGREDIENTS:
Beef, tomato puree, bread crumbs (contains bleached wheat flour, dextrose, yeast), water, green bell peppers, onions and less than 2% of the following: caramel color, corn syrup solids, dehydrated onion, dehydrated parsley, dextrose, garlic powder, high fructose corn syrup, maltodextrin, modified corn starch, beef flavor (contains salt and gum arabic), natural flavor, paprika, parmesan cheese (part-skim milk, cheese cultures, salt, enzymes), salt, sodium phosphates, soy sauce (naturally fermented from wheat and soybeans, salt), spices, sugar, tomato paste, torula yeast, vinegar and whey.

[bblwi]

I cut up enough spuds to fill a medium casserole dish and nuke it for 12 minutes and you can mash those spuds into nice mashed potatoes if you want to. I also never peel potatoes even for boiled or mashed. I put onions with mine when I nuke them also and I don't add any water or usually no butter either.

Bryce

[FWS]

You can make a large quantity of mashed potatoes and freeze them yourself too, works great when sealing portions in vacuum bags, flatten em' out and freeze them on a baking sheet and then stack upright like books on a shelf in the freezer. Easy defrost too. Or use the plastic freezer jars Ball makes for more liquid things.

Do that with a lot of stuff, like the base for things like cioppino, rouxs, stocks made from crab, fish, shrimp, chicken carcasses, beef bones, bean dishes, and so on.

[mostinterestingmanintheworld]

Jul 27, 2014 8:45:17 GMT -6 FWS said:

cheaper than fresh potatoes

Perhaps where you are, but not here............

water, little milk and butter and in 15 mins you have mashed potatoes on the table.

That's really all it takes to make mashed potatoes from scratch, I've never found peeling potatoes to be a particularly difficult or strenuous task. Boiling them takes even less effort, and the act of mashing them takes a minute or so. I can even whip them in the Kitchenaid stand mixer if the mood strikes me.



There are whole aisles full of pre-packaged processed foods I walk right past in the grocery stores on my way to procure fresh, raw ingredients.

Look at all the extras you get in..............

Tyson® Seasoned Beef Meatloaf

INGREDIENTS:
Beef, tomato puree, bread crumbs (contains bleached wheat flour, dextrose, yeast), water, green bell peppers, onions and less than 2% of the following: caramel color, corn syrup solids, dehydrated onion, dehydrated parsley, dextrose, garlic powder, high fructose corn syrup, maltodextrin, modified corn starch, beef flavor (contains salt and gum arabic), natural flavor, paprika, parmesan cheese (part-skim milk, cheese cultures, salt, enzymes), salt, sodium phosphates, soy sauce (naturally fermented from wheat and soybeans, salt), spices, sugar, tomato paste, torula yeast, vinegar and whey.

[mostinterestingmanintheworld]

The beauty in buying the prepackaged potatoes is that you don't have to purchase your corn syrup solids, maltodextrin, beef flavor, phosphates and other ingredients separately.

Can you imagine how much it would cost to have to but all that stuff yourself? Plus it would be difficult to get the right amounts if you did it yourself.

[FWS]

I know, only thing in my mashed potatoes are potatoes, milk or 1/2 & 1/2, sometimes but not always butter, a smidgen of salt, and pepper. Sometimes garlic.

Unless I make colcannon, in which case I'll saute diced bacon (really good bacon too), and then cook minced onion and shredded cabbage till soft and then mix it with mashed potatoes.

Or use mashed potatoes as the topping for a Shepherds pie.

Or mix with a cooked filet of cod, rockfish, lingcod, or similar white fleshed saltwater fish, form into patties, dip em' in egg and seasoned breadcrumbs or panko to fry into codcakes.

Or do the whole British thing with bangers and mash with green peas.

[PamIsMe]

"The beauty in buying the prepackaged potatoes is that...."" Good one lol

So Joel, why have you been hiding your sense of humor all these years?
Cheers,
Pam

[mostinterestingmanintheworld]

I haven't......

[trappincoyotes39]

FWS I have made plenty of fresh mashed taters in my life what me and others are talking about is from time to time having instant is a good thing when busy in life is all............. Depending on time of year I can get 5 lbs of potatoes for .99 cents on sale or they can get to 3.49 per 5lbs at times. I live close to an area that used to harvets a lot of potatoes annually they used to have potato days every year there. Now Because corn and soybeans most all the commercial harvest of potatoes are gone from the area.

Minnesota , North Dakota and Wisconsin produce a good share of potatoes annually.

Sweet potatoes are also something I buy every month as well. make,home made fries and just baked with salt and pepper very good.

[trappnman]

a good home cooked meal is the best for sure-

but there are many times something quick and hot is all there is time for

potatoes here, .39 a lb at Kwik trip, every day (.39 a lb for bananas as well

[trappnman]

I think the difference is some think of food as a lifestyle, others think of it as refueling

[FWS]

but there are many times something quick and hot is all there is time for

Which can still be home cooked from raw ingredients faster and cheaper than buying the ultra processed pre packaged corporate stuff which is often made in China unfortunately.

Potatoes can be cut into chunks and pressure canned, they're already cooked after pressure canning and can be easily mashed. Same with a number of stews, particularly using game, bear meat is really good when you substitute bear meat for beef in beef bourguignon and then pressure canning it. The pressure canning renders it absolutely tender and makes great sandwiches on a good French roll or bolilo.

I think the difference is some think of food as a lifestyle, others think of it as refueling

Some of us think that refueling should be done with the best ingredients, and see it as a sport to make the best food we'll enjoy the most. Especially using wild caught animal proteins.

potatoes here, .39 a lb at Kwik trip

50 lb bags of fresh Russets are cheap at the restaurant supply places, good deal if you're going to can potatoes. I bought 15 lb bags of red potatoes for under $3 at the same place. Lot of good potatoes produced in the Klamath Basin in NorCal and OR.

[trappincoyotes39]

FWS don't be so afraid to eat a few things from a box every now and then it won't kill you . Oh wait we are all going to die at some point and no one is guaranteed X amount of time period.

My taters made in china? I do not think so:).

I love to cook and do a lot of it, in fact my wife rarely cooks I do 95 percent of it . Some people have busy enough lives that convince food works well also. I have little time for canning foods, I have other things I would rather do each to their own. I have 4 kids and a wife and land to take care of things to go see and do and better spend my time doing other things that lots of canning.

I just bought betty Crocker boxed potato varieties for .33 each on sale. Hard to beat that if one figures in time of a garden, canning, buying seed etc. so cheaper? Been there on the garden didn't save me any money when all said and done over buying most produce at the store.

[trappincoyotes39]

My parents can beef they are retired and have the time to do such My mom used to can a pile of things back in the day then she had to go to work and canning went by the way side and more store bought produce purchased.

[FWS]

FWS don't be so afraid to eat a few things from a box every now and then it won't kill you

Why would I want to do that when there is better food available and I have the ability to procure it, and the knowledge and skills to prepare it ?

My taters made in china? I do not think so

Don't be so sure about that, if you're eating packaged processed foods the likelihood is that some was processed and packaged in China.

I have little time for canning foods,

Too bad because it doesn't take much time to do it.

[PamIsMe]

"Potatoes can be cut into chunks and pressure canned, they're already cooked after pressure canning and can be easily mashed."

Never thought of that, good idea. Do you have to heat them up before you mash 'em? Doesn't save me from having to peel them all though :-(
The Beav cans venison in qt. jars and it's tasty, but he does so much of it, between that and grinding venison hamburger, and having brats, baloney and steaks,
I just don't want to eat venison every night. My other guilty quick meal is Hamburger Helper. lol

Cheers,
Pam