At the end of May, global poultry breeding company Aviagen hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its brand new feed processing facility in Pikeville, Tennessee. There to do the honors was the Pikeville Chamber of Commerce, along with Pikeville City Mayor Philip Cagle, Bledsoe County Mayor Gregg Ridley and Jeff Aiken Deputy Commissioner for the Tennessee Department of Agriculture. Other chamber members, dignitaries and representatives from state and local economic development were also in attendance at this momentous event.

Pikeville marks the company’s third feed processing facility in the US, and is now home to the country’s most advanced feed mill. With a capacity of 3,000 tons per week (156,000 tons annually), the new facility will supply Aviagen’s internal flocks with nutritious, biosecure feed that is specially formulated for their unique dietary needs.

Food safety and security are a top commitment for Aviagen, and the new facility leverages the latest technology available to achieve full pathogen elimination and comprehensive biosecurity. Aviagen was the first poultry breeding company in the United States to design and build its own feed processing facilities to eliminate contamination and ensure high levels of biosecurity. Adding to the company’s extensive biosecurity measures in and around the facility, the location in Pikeville was chosen for its physical isolation.

"Protecting the health and welfare of our birds and keeping pathogens out of the food chain are our foremost priorities," said Richard Obermeyer, director of feed production for Aviagen North America. "This all begins with biosecure, high-quality feed."

Pikeville joins Sallisaw, Oklahoma and Athens, Alabama as Aviagen's three high-capacity, state-of-the-art feed processing facilities in the use.

A virtual tour of the Pikeville facility is available on YouTube.