The public is invited to learn more about a proposed expansion of Hiday Poultry Farms LLC at 33819 Midway Drive S.E. during a meeting at 6 tonight at the Fairmount Grange Hall, 835 North Albany Road N.W.
Owner Randy Hiday has applied for an animal-increase permit from the Oregon Department of Agriculture's Confined Animal Feeding Operation program.
The facility currently raises about 150,000 broiler chickens at a time. They are sold to Foster Farms.
The D-H did not become aware of tonight's meeting until someone emailed the paper Wednesday.
With permit approval, the number of chickens would increase to more than 550,000, according to information on the permit application submitted by Hiday, who lives in Eugene.
Hiday said this morning that he hasn't been contacted by anyone with objections to his permit request. He does not plan to attend tonight's informational meeting.
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Hiday also has a poultry operation on Nye Road near Brownsville and has raised chickens for about 14 years. He purchased the Midway operation a little more than a year ago.
The operation sits on two parcels, one 40 acres and the other 20 acres. Hiday is asking the Department of Agriculture to allow his farm to receive up to 550,000 chicks at a time that would be grown out over 40 to 45 days. There would be, on average, 6.5 grow-out periods per year.
The property now has eight poultry houses. A new manure storage barn and a shavings barn are under construction. Hiday plans to add 12 new chicken houses, each 60 by 500 feet, along with another manure storage building of 60 by 200 feet and another shavings barn, 60 by 96 feet.
Construction has begun under an ag-exempt permit. Construction projects are expected to be completed by 2009.
Chickens will be raised on wood shavings within the houses. All manure and shavings generated at the facility will be removed from the site to be turned into compost. Chickens that die at the farm are currently sent to the landfill. In the future, dead chickens may be added to manure to create compost, which will also be hauled away.
Written comments concerning the permit will be accepted until Oct. 25. Copies of the information can be accessed through the Department of Agriculture's website at www.oregon.gov.ODA/NRD. Comments should be directed to Wym Matthews, the Confined Animal Feeding Operation program manager at 635 Capitol St. N.E., Salem 97301. His number is (503) 986-4792.
