About 70 jobs will be created with the opening in June of a $5-million facility in Danville in Yell County where workers will produce chicken-based treats for pets, the state and a Chinese firm announced Monday.
Pet Won Pet Products will take over a 29,000-square-foot facility that once was home to Petit Jean Poultry. The company said it expects production of the pet treats to start in June. Based in the Shandong Province of China, Pet Won has had a similar plant there for 17 years.
Mike Preston, executive director of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, said the province will be home to two Arkansas companies: Pet Won Pet Products, and Sun Paper, which has announced plans to build a $1-billion mill near Arkadelphia.
The AEDC said Pet Won qualifies for two incentive programs: an income-tax break through Advantage Arkansas, based on payroll of new jobs; and a refund of sales taxes, through the Tax Back program, paid on building materials, taxable machinery and equipment. The company didn't publicly release any details on wages for the new jobs, the AEDC said.
-- Stephen Steed