• Tyson Foods Inc (NYSE: TSN) will reportedly close two chicken plants in May, affecting nearly 1,700 employees. Demand will be shifted to other Tyson facilities.

• Tyson will shut down a plant in Glen Allen, Virginia, with around 700 employees, and a plant in Van Buren, Arkansas, with nearly 1,000 employees.

• The company said the closures were part of a broader plan in its chicken division to improve operations and use full available capacity at each plant.

• “The current scale and inability to economically improve operations has led to the difficult decision to close the facilities,” a company spokesman said.

• The Wall Street Journal first reported the upcoming closures.

• In its latest quarter, Tyson’s chicken operating income almost halved from $140 million to $69 million amid increased pressure as the company’s profit margins fell from historic highs during the pandemic.

• Wall Street Journal report notes that chicken prices have fallen sharply in recent months as processors increase supply.

• Boneless, skinless breast meat prices fell from $3.50 in May of last year to about $1 by January, according to research firm Urner Barry, squeezing profits for companies.

• Price Action: TSN shares are down 1.12% at $56.66 during the premarket session on the last check Wednesday.

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This article Tyson To Shutter Two US Chicken Plants Employing Almost 1.7K Workers originally appeared on Benzinga.com

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