Featured Content

Tyson Inaugurates New Fully-Cooked Poultry Production Plant in Virginia

LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr

Tyson Foods on November 29 officially opened a $300 million state-of-the-art poultry production plant in Danville, Virginia. It is one of the Springdale, Arkansas, USA-headquartered company’s most-automated plants to date, marking the deployment of innovation pilots and prototypes at scale. The 325,000-square-foot facility will produce approximately four million pounds of premium quality, fully-cooked poultry products weekly to meet the increasing demand for iconic Tyson brand retail and foodservice foodservice products.

Located in the Cane Creek Centre, a local business park owned by the City of Danville and Pittsylvania County, the plant has created nearly 400 new jobs for the southeastern Virginia area.

“Danville represents a significant commitment to the region and we take our responsibility to enhance the communities where we live and work seriously. This plant is also a significant step toward our ongoing goal of operational excellence by investing in innovative technology and automation. It delivers on our commitment to ensuring best in class service for our customers and accelerating our long-term growth,? said President and CEO Donnie King.

 

Industry-first Technology

The Danville facility is one of the company’s most highly-automated plants to date, featuring high-speed automated case packing lines and high-speed robotic case palletizing units. The technology helps to maximize operational efficiency and increase overall safety for employees. It also includes a product inspection process that incorporates metal detection, X-ray and vision grading to ensure consumers receive high-quality products.

The Danville operation heralds Tyson’s first at-scale integration of wearable armband devices to improve worker health, safety and productivity. Worn by every frontline employee, they integrate technology featuring sensors that relay environmental data to safety managers to better identify risk exposures.

“The combination of our team and technology at Danville will strengthen our ability to better meet demand for retail and foodservice fully-cooked Tyson brand products,” said Wes Morris, Tyson Foods’ poultry group president.