Sanderson Farms, Inc.

The Bryan, Texas plant at 2000 Shiloh Avenue operates under FSIS establishment numbers P19688 and V19688, listed to Sanderson Farms, Inc. with doing-business-as names including Covington Farms, Sanderson Farms, Inc. (Processing Div), Sanderson Farms, LLC, Wayne Farms LLC, and Wayne-Sanderson Farms. FSIS lists the plant for poultry slaughter, poultry processing, and export certification, with a grant of inspection date on file of August 15, 2017. FSIS classifies the establishment as large and places it in slaughter volume category 5.0. Poultry is the only species reported slaughtered under inspection, and no custom-exempt activity is reported.

Wayne-Sanderson Farms describes itself on its website as the nation's third-largest poultry producer, formed from two poultry companies with roots in farm supply and feed manufacturing. The company reports 23 processing and prepared-foods plants, more than 26,000 employees, and about 2,000 contract family farmers, with farms and facilities spanning North Carolina to Texas. Its brand portfolio includes Sanderson Farms, Naked Truth, Covington Farms, Harrison, Kosmic Krunch, Buffaloos, Fly'n Saucers, Crispy Fliers, Platinum Harvest, Chef's Craft, and Wayne Farms, sold through retail and foodservice channels.

This is a company-scale industrial poultry operation rather than a local custom-processing shop. The website addresses wholesale customers, foodservice buyers, and contract poultry growers. Plant-level details such as hours, retail sales at the site, or per-facility services are not stated in the sources on file.

The Bryan plant reports no custom-exempt activity to FSIS, so custom slaughter or cut-and-wrap for a farmer's own animals is not indicated. Wayne-Sanderson Farms instead works with contract poultry growers at the company level. Its farmer page states the company partners with nearly 2,000 family farmers across broiler, breeder, and pullet farms, that about one third of its farmers are in Alabama followed by Texas, Mississippi, North Carolina, Georgia, and Arkansas, that 48 percent have grown for the company 10 or more years, and that 24 percent are second generation or older. Contracted growers tend the birds, track health and growth, follow biosecurity practices, and maintain housing equipment, with support described as a flock advisor, veterinarians, a technical services department, and ongoing research and training. The company states there is no single defined way to partner and directs prospective growers to its contact page. Contract terms, pay, and house requirements are not stated in the sources.

Sanderson Farms, Inc. operates under a federal grant of inspection, so product from this plant can be sold anywhere in the United States, which matters if you sell online or across a state line. FSIS does not list a custom-exempt activity for this plant.

No retail counter, freezer sales, halves or quarters, bundles, delivery, or online ordering at the Bryan plant are described in the sources. Wayne-Sanderson Farms products reach households through retail brands including Sanderson Farms, Naked Truth, and Covington Farms, sold by grocery and foodservice customers rather than direct from the establishment as far as the sources state.

If you are buying a half or quarter animal, the plant is where the animal is processed; the farm sells you the animal. Read how to buy a half cow for the sequence and the math.