Representatives of Koch Foods joined state and local leaders in Etowah County to formally open the company’s state-of-the-art grain storage and distribution facility in Attalla.

Koch Foods (pronounced “Cook”) said the new poultry feed mill will create 32 jobs with an annual payroll of $1 million. The company invested more than $60 million in the project.

The Attalla facility, served by rail and designed with technologically advanced features for maximum efficiency, will support the company’s expanded processing plant in nearby Gadsden.

Koch officials joined Gov. Kay Ivey to cut the ribbon during an opening ceremony for the 130-acre facility, which can hold more than 1 billion bushels of corn.

“We announced this project in November of 2019, and to bring it to fruition on time during a pandemic speaks highly to the cooperation of all those involved — the Koch employees, the contractors, the state, the city and all the local agencies,” said Mark Kaminsky, chief operating officer of Koch. “It is this cooperation that has led Koch to invest over $400 million in Alabama over the last five years.”

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey cuts the ribbon on Koch Foods’ new poultry feed mill in Attalla. (Hal Yeager / Governor’s Office)

Growth plans

In 2018, Koch announced an $80 million expansion of its Gadsden plant as part of a growth project involving 200 new jobs.

Park Ridge, Illinois-based Koch employs more than 3,700 employees in Alabama with an annual payroll of $182 million. Koch works with more than 200 local businesses and farmers at its four processing complexes in the state.

The Gadsden-Etowah Industrial Development Authority, the City of Attalla and key partners, including Norfolk Southern Railway, teamed to bring the project to fruition, said David Hooks, executive director of the Gadsden-Etowah IDA.

“This project qualifies for two of the industrial sectors the Gadsden-Etowah Industrial Development Authority has targeted — logistics, and food and farming,” said Hooks, who added the project solidifies Etowah County’s position as a “national leader in both sectors.”

Source: Gadsden-Etowah Industrial Development Authority

This story originally appeared on the Alabama Department of Commerce’s Made in Alabama website.