Mountaire Farms is the fourth-largest producer of

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adult m ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, with headquarters in

Millsboro, Delaware Millsboro is a town in Sussex County, Delaware, United States. Millsboro is part of the Salisbury metropolitan area. History Millsboro's earliest European settlers were of English family origin; though most were second generation colonists who s ...

. The company operates internationally, serving the United States and foreign markets as far away as

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

. Mountaire Farms has facilities in the states of

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

, and

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. The company has about 7,000 employees and plays a major part in the economy of Delaware.

History

What became Mountaire Farms was founded in Arkansas in 1914 by Guy Cameron, who started a local feed business. His son Ted Cameron built four feed mills in the 1950s to serve local growers. In 1959, the company started processing chickens, with Mountaire Poultry, Inc. incorporated in 1964. The company was incorporated as Mountaire Corporation in 1971. Ron Cameron, the son of Ted Cameron, became president and CEO of the company in 1975. In 1977, Mountaire Farms expanded operations to Delaware when it purchased H&H Poultry in Selbyville. The company acquired Piedmont Poultry in Lumber Bridge, North Carolina in 1996. In 2000, Mountaire Farms purchased operations from Townsends, including Central Grain Facilities, in Millsboro, Delaware. The same year, the company built a new feed mill in

Candor, North Carolina Candor is a town in Montgomery County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 840 at the 2010 census. Candor is the home of the North Carolina Peach Festival, which is held every year on the third Saturday of July. The town's welcome si ...

. In 2003, Mountaire Farms bought the

Tyson Tyson is a male given name of old French origin meaning 'high-spirited', 'fire'. It is from this that a surname arose 'son of Tyson'. Surname *Alan Tyson (1926–2000), British musicologist *Barbara Tyson (born 1964), Canadian actress *Bill Tyso ...

feed mill in

Princess Anne, Maryland Princess Anne is a town in Somerset County, Maryland, Somerset County, Maryland, United States, that also serves as its county seat. Its population was 3,290 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. It is included in the Salisbury metropolita ...

. The company acquired operations from Hostetter Grain Facilities in

Trappe, Maryland Trappe is a town in Talbot County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,077 at the 2010 census. It is the site of one of the largest mixed-use developments on the U.S. East Coast called Trappe East or "Lakeside" with controversy arising ...

Queen Anne, Maryland Queen Anne is a town in Queen Anne's County, Maryland, Queen Anne's and Talbot County, Maryland, Talbot counties in the U.S. state of Maryland. The population was 222 at the 2010 census. Geography Queen Anne is located at (38.919039, -75.952827) ...

, and

Seaford, Delaware Seaford is a city located along the Nanticoke River in Sussex County, Delaware, United States. According to the 2010 Census Bureau figures, the population of the city is 6,928, an increase of 3.4% from the 2000 census. It is part of the Salisb ...

in 2007. In 2009, Mountaire Farms bought Mauney Grain in

New London, North Carolina New London is a town in Stanly County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 600 at the 2010 census, and was estimated to be 724 as of 2019. The town lies between Albemarle and Richfield along U.S. 52 in the southern Piedmont regi ...

. The company acquired Carmean Grain Facilities in

Ridgely, Maryland Ridgely is a town in Caroline County, Maryland, Caroline County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,639 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. History The town was established on May 13, 1867 by the Maryland and Baltimore Land A ...

in 2011. In 2012, Mountaire Farms bought Gavilon Grain in

Townsend, Delaware Townsend is a town in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. The population was 2,049 at the 2010 census, an increase of 492.2% from 2000. The center of population of Delaware is located in Townsend. Geography Townsend is located at (39.39 ...

. The company took over the Townsend/Omtron Hatchery in

Siler City, North Carolina Siler City is a town in western Chatham County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town's population was 7,702. History Siler City began when Plikard Dederic Siler and his wife, Elizabeth Hartsoe Siler, settled about four ...

in 2013. Mountaire Farms bought Star Milling in

Statesville, North Carolina Statesville is a city in and the county seat of Iredell County, North Carolina, United States, and it is part of the Charlotte metropolitan area. Statesville was established in 1789 by an act of the North Carolina Legislature. The population was r ...

in 2014, which became their Breeder Feed Mill. In 2016, the company bought a former processing plant in Siler City, with plans to renovate and update the plant. In October of that year, Mountaire Farms opened a new Corporate Office Building in Millsboro. In 2017, the company acquired Lansing Trade Group, LLC, which has operations in Eastville and

Painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

in Virginia.

COVID-19 outbreak

While the company had a "coronavirus task force" before finding any cases, in April and May 2020 the company's

Selbyville, Delaware Selbyville is a town in Sussex County, Delaware, United States. Its population was 2,167 at the 2010 census, an increase of 31.7% over the previous decade. It is part of the Salisbury, Maryland-Delaware Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Se ...

plant became a hotspot for an outbreak of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, with the

UFCW The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) is a labor union representing approximately 1.3 million workers in the United States and Canada in industries including retail; meatpacking, food processing and manufacturing; hosp ...

stating there are 40 cases. Sam Wilson, a

Sussex County, Delaware Sussex County is located in the southern part of the U.S. state of Delaware, on the Delmarva Peninsula. As of the 2020 census, the population was 237,378. The county seat is Georgetown. The first European settlement in the state of Delaware w ...

councilman, called further testing at county poultry processing plants "a dumb idea" because they were "losing millions of dollars". Other processing plants with positive cases include nine cases at a Lumber Bridge, North Carolina plant. Eleven cases were found at a 1500-employee processing plant

, leading

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and the

North Carolina National Guard The North Carolina National Guard (NCNG), commonly known as the North Carolina Guard, is a component of the North Carolina Department of Public Safety and the National Guard of the United States. It is composed of Army and Air National Guard unit ...

to test more employees and family members, which led to a total of 74 positive tests out of 356 tested.

Political contributions

Mountaire Farms was the fifth largest contributor to the 2016 Trump campaign. In 2018 Mountaire contributed 7.7 million dollars towards GOP efforts in that years midterm elections, which bought Mountaire CEO Ronald Cameron access to The White House on the day of the election to watch the election results. Ronald Cameron, "head" of Mountaire Farms, was appointed to the President Trump's advisory committee on the pandemic.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official website
Agriculture companies of the United States Food manufacturers of the United States Companies based in Sussex County, Delaware Food and drink companies established in 1914 1914 establishments in Arkansas Agriculture in Delaware Agriculture companies established in 1914 American companies established in 1914 Millsboro, Delaware