A proposed chicken operation just outside of Scio has been met with mixed feelings from local residents.
Information posted about a building permit filed by Eric Simon, president of Ideal Ag Supply LLC, of Brownsville, and approved by Linn County, a dozen 60-foot by 600-foot poultry sheds are to be located on Jefferson-Scio Drive approximately 1,100 yards from the Santiam River.
“They will be composting manure onsite,” Kendra Kimbirauskas, who posted the permit information on the Scio Community Happenings page on Feb. 24.
Simon verbally verified the permit information about the operation, called Jefferson-Scio Ranch by Foster Farms, the intended recipient of the fully raised chickens and shortened to JS Ranch by Simon.
The permit showed the operation will be producing six flocks per year which is 3,480,000 birds/year yielding 4,500 tons of manure/year. The permit also noted that Simon anticipates earnings of about $1.4 million gross per year from the operation that may provide four local jobs.
Kimbirauskas posted that allegedly, none of the several neighbors and landowners have yet to be notified about the operation, and final permits have not been received from the Oregon Department of Agriculture.
Contrary to speculation, Simon said work has not been started onsite.
“We are waiting for permits and the weather,” said Simon, who has met all requirements to date for the project. “I’ve also met with the one neighbor nearby. This is happening.”
Echoing concerns by other residents, Lori Bailey-Lambie posted, “I don’t care as long as it doesn’t become oppressively stinky or an ecological time bomb.”
Simon assures that manure is not composted but is kept either inside the barn or the manure shed at all times before it is exported.
“We are trying to create a market with local farmers,” he said of benefits to the area. “Our nearest neighbor is over 1,200 feet from a fan that we don’t use that much, and I’ve talked to that neighbor.”
Simon said Foster Farms rarely expands, and the ranch will be a “big boost for local construction, everything from gravel to lumber companies.”
Simon’s plan is to follow every guideline to raise the birds safely.
“My birds are treated well,” he said. “We invest heavily in systems that make the birds as comfortable as possible.
“Someone will be on the ranch 24/7,” he added. “We’ll have cameras, security, and if anything goes wrong, our computers will tell us immediately.”
Ira Brill, vice-president of communications for Foster Farms, said property purchased by independent poultry growers, must meet all regulatory and environmental requirements for infastructure development.
“Independent poultry growers have productively and responsibly contributed to agriculture in the Pacific Northwest for more than 80 years,” Brill added.
Many residents and farmers still have their doubts, and Farmers Against Foster Farms started a Facebook page recently to address these doubts and other issues regarding raising broiler chickens in the Stayton, Aumsville, Jefferson and Scio area. The group is comprised of farmers, ranchers and rural and other residents of Linn and Marion counties.
A full report can be found on the organization’s website, www.farmersagainstfosterfarms.com. Also onsite is information about each of the proposed sites and graphs that support the group’s findings.
According to FAFF, Hiday Poultry Farms, located in Brownsville and owned by Randy Hiday, is in escrow to purchase the historic 80.44-acre Porter Farm located at 10963 Porter Road S.E. in Aumsville, halfway between Aumsville and Stayton.
FAFF reports that in November 2019, Foster Farms gained approval to process poultry for export to China, which they view as motivation to expand to this area to take advantage of the increasing demand of a global market.
“If our area becomes the next frontier of Oregon industrial poultry expansion, our lives will never be the same,” FAFF members predict on the site.
FAFF member and North Santiam River resident Christina Eastman said, “I fear that if these mega-chicken factory facilities get a grip in our ever-so-fragile native environment, they will push our wildlife into the abyss of extinction.”
Sen. Ron Wyden will host a virtual Linn County Town Hall at 3 p.m. April 1. A registration form can be found on the Farmers Against Foster Farms Facebook page. The Town Hall will be streamed on People’s Town Hall’s Facebook page.
For more information, follow the conversation on the Scio Community Happenings Facebook page or the Farmers Against Foster Farms Facebook page.
