THOMPSON, Iowa (AP) — Construction on a proposed $92 million egg-processing facility in northern Iowa has been placed on hold because of a bird flu outbreak last spring.
Officials said Friday,m December 18, 2015, that the plant- to be constructed in Thompson - is on hold until further notice. The Forest City Summit reports that the plant was designed to create 197 jobs and process eggs supplied from new egg production facilities.
Rembrandt Enterprises Inc. announced the project in February, two months before the bird flu outbreak. Egg producers, including Rembrandt, killed millions of chickens in an attempt to stop the spread of the disease.
The company said the bird flu left it with about half of its normal capacity, and that it expects that it will take 18 to 24 months to regain full production.