VALDOSTA, Ga. (AP) – Walmart announced Wednesday that it will build a new $350 million milk processing plant in south Georgia that will employ about 400 people.
Arkansas-based Walmart announced that the plant will supply milk to more than 750 Walmart and Sam’s Club stores in Georgia and neighboring states.
Bruce Heckman, Walmart’s vice president of manufacturing, said in a statement that the company wants to do more to secure its milk supply and that the company “wants to offer our customers high-quality milk at low prices every day.” Stated. rely on “
The factory produces gallons and half gallons of white milk and chocolate milk.
This is Walmart’s second milk processing plant, following the one it opened in Fort Wayne, Indiana, in 2018, to help control production of some of Walmart’s most price-sensitive food products. The company previously purchased all its milk from other dairy companies.
The retail giant is following the lead of other major grocers, including Kroger, which has long operated its own dairy plants. But some critics warn that because Walmart buys milk from a small number of very large dairies, smaller dairies are under added pressure. According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, milk intake per capita in 2021 was 22% lower than in 2011.
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp said the power plant will create new opportunities for farmers and strengthen Georgia’s agriculture industry. Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper, like Kemp, a Republican, said the power plant would help preserve Georgia’s farm income.
Workers will earn an average annual salary of more than $60,000, including benefits, said Walmart spokeswoman Tricia Moriarty.
Walmart plans to begin operations in Valdosta in late 2025. The company could be eligible for an $8 million state income tax credit of $4,000 per job over five years. Andrea Schluyger, executive director of the Valdosta-Lounds County Development Authority, said Valdosta and Lowndes counties will receive property tax breaks for real estate and equipment for 20 years. He said estimates of these savings are not available.
Walmart said it has about 65,000 employees in Georgia, working at 213 stores, 10 distribution centers and three fulfillment centers.
According to the Georgia Milk Producers, a trade group for dairy farmers, there are currently 89 dairy farms in Georgia with 92,000 dairy cows, and each farm has more than 1,000 dairy cows. It is said that there is This is much larger than the national average dairy farm, which had 337 dairy cows in 2022. Georgia produced 235 million gallons of milk in 2022. That’s more than other Southern states, but far less than national leaders like California, Wisconsin, New York and Texas. and the state of idaho.
Moriarty said Walmart plans to buy milk from existing farms, but said some new dairies may open and some may expand. .
“There should be sufficient milk supply in the Southeast to accommodate the facility’s volume,” Moriarty wrote in an email.
Georgia currently has two commercial milk processing plants in Atlanta and Lawrenceville.
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