(NewsNation) — The city of Lexington, Nebraska, may rebound from the loss of 3,200 jobs at a beef processing plant if Tyson Foods moves quickly to sell the property to another user, the local congressman tells “The Hill on NewsNation.”
“Looking forward, I’ve really emphasized how important it is that Tyson avail the facility for sale to the next occupant, hopefully,” Republican Rep. Adrian Smith said Wednesday. “We need Tyson to be a willing seller for the property.”
The company says it’s weighing its options with the shuttered property, which leaves a significant economic dent for the city of 10,000 residents and for state government, which is expected to lose $3 billion in revenue annually.
Smith calls the closure “devastating” but brushed aside suggestions that the federal government lean on the U.S. meat industry to prevent more job losses, as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has called for.
“Clearly this is a painful situation, and it’s not something to politicize,” Smith said.
In addition to closing the Lexington beef processing center, Tyson Foods is converting its Amarillo, Texas, beef facility to a single, full-capacity shift, with the reported loss of nearly 2,000 jobs there.
Tyson officials have said the moves are part of a plan to “right-size” its beef business.
