Pilgrim’s Pride will invest $75 million to expand and modernize its Ellijay, Georgia poultry facility, boosting harvesting and portioning capacity for boneless chicken products. The company will close harvesting operations in Chattanooga, affecting 348 employees while rerouting deboning work to Ellijay to optimize efficiency and product mix.
Pilgrim’s Pride is allocating approximately $75 million to expand and modernize its Ellijay, Georgia facility. The project will increase harvesting and portioning capacity and enable production of higher-value boneless chicken products used in sandwiches, tenders and other fast-growing categories.
As part of the shift, the company will close the aging harvesting portion of its Chattanooga, Tennessee plant while retaining its deboning lines. Deboning output will be transferred to Ellijay to maintain service levels for bone-in products across Pilgrim’s network.
The closure affects 348 team members in Chattanooga, all of whom will be offered transfers to other Pilgrim’s facilities or opportunities to apply for open roles nationwide. On-site transition resources and continued engagement with workforce partners will support affected employees.
This investment aligns production with evolving consumer demand and key customer growth plans, modernizes Pilgrim’s portfolio mix and strengthens supply chain resilience. By concentrating capacity in a high-performing facility, the company aims to improve operational efficiency and long-term competitiveness.
