Central Virginia farmers establish cooperative to restore poultry production, following Tyson plant closure
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A new farmer-owned cooperative aims to restore and revitalize poultry production in Central Virginia, following last year's closure of the Tyson Foods broiler facility in Hanover County.
The Central Virginia Poultry Cooperative will produce and sell cage-free eggs to Dutch Country Organics, LLC of Indiana. The new cooperative expects to place hens in members' converted broiler houses in April.
Virginia poultry farmers produced nearly 62 million eggs in 2022, and the hope is that the new effort will help them surpass that number in the future.
“When we learned last March that poultry farmers in Central Virginia needed our help, I directed our Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry to bring a team together and find a way forward for the family-owned farms of the region,” said Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin. “I am thrilled to share that less than a year later; the Commonwealth is supporting many of these growers in making a bold step forward to a brighter future in the fast-growing market for cage-free eggs.”
Funding to create the cooperative is coming from several sources; the group will receive $1.4 million from the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission, $341,750 from the Rural Rehabilitation Trust Fund and a $50,000 grant from the governor's Agriculture and Forestry Industries Development Fund, with matching funds from Amelia, Buckingham, Charlotte, Cumberland, Lunenburg, Nottoway, and Prince Edward counties.
Dutch Country Organics, LLC is an Amish-owned specialty egg business that sells eggs to national retailers such as Costco, Albertsons, Target, Aldi, Walmart, and Kroger.
