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Darling Ingredients has entered into a letter of intent with poultry manufacturer Butterball to explore the construction of a new poultry rendering plant. The new facility being explored would sit adjacent to Butterball’s facility in Mount Olive, North Carolina, and is expected to process about 18 million pounds of material weekly through three lines. Darling Ingredients turns edible by-products and food waste into sustainable products such as green energy, renewable diesel, collagen and fertiliser. Butterball products are currently distributed in more than 45 countries including the US. The company operates six processing plants in the US, located in North Carolina, Arkansas and Missouri. The rendering facility will provide critical infrastructure for the meat processing industry while providing more feedstocks for renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel. Pending permits and the execution of definitive agreements, construction would likely commence in early 2024 and is expected to be completed by 2025. Randall C. Stuewe, Darling Ingredients chairman and CEO, said: "Darling Ingredients is committed to supporting its customers and agricultural growth in North Carolina. A new Mount Olive rendering facility strengthens rendering reliability, increases capacity and provides a critical service that transforms this material into invaluable ingredients and feedstock for renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel." Jay Jandrain, president and CEO of Butterball, commented: "Butterball has been a proud, long-time member of the Mount Olive community, providing positive economic impacts, including jobs, for many in the area. We're excited to explore the potential environmental and safety benefits of an improved operating footprint at Mount Olive." North Carolina's agriculture commissioner Steve Troxler said the announcement is great news for the state's agriculture industry. He added that increasing the rendering capacity in North Carolina provides the “ability to turn an otherwise unusable animal material into a useable product” and is an essential service for the agriculture community. Further terms of the construction were not disclosed.