Maxwell Foods permanently closing hog production operations, to end in 2021

GOLDSBORO, N.C. (WTVD) -- Goldsboro Milling, the parent company of Maxwell Foods, announced that it will soon be permanently closing its hog production operations citing 'projected financial losses.'

After more than 31 years, Maxwell Foods LLC, a livestock production company, will begin shuttering operations in a phased approach and expects all operations to end by mid-2021.

"The continuing low prices paid for our product, together with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, make the current and projected financial losses unsustainable for the company to continue operating," the company wrote in a statement.

The North Carolina Pork Council (NCPC) expressed their sorrow in a joint statement saying, "We are deeply saddened that the persistent and untenable economic conditions mean that Maxwell Foods has reached the difficult decision to cease hog production operations by the middle of 2021."

According to the NCPC, Maxwell Foods and its network of family farmers played a vital part in Eastern North Carolina communities and economic stability.

The council plans to find 'sustainable options' for approximately 150 contract farms in the Maxwell Foods system while hoping that employees find opportunities in livestock agriculture as the company enters its 'phased transition process.'