The Colorado-based Pilgrim's Pride Corp. is closing a poultry plant that employs more than 1,000 people in northeast Alabama.
A secretary for Boaz Mayor Tim Walker says the company announced Tuesday that it will close a chicken processing plant in the Marshall County town.
Executives told workers about the decision in a meeting at the plant, but a company spokesman didn't immediately return messages seeking comment.
Poultry is a major regional industry, and Pilgrim's Pride is one of the largest employers.
The move comes less than three months after Pilgrim's said it was spending $25 million to expand in south Alabama. The company is building a feed mill in Pinckard, and refurbishing a processing plant in Enterprise.
Pilgrim's Pride employs about 37,500 people in 12 states, Puerto Rico and Mexico.