A Wright County official welcomes a massive egg factory which residents in Cerro Gordo County fought to keep away. Sparboe Foods will unveil plans today to build a 45-million dollar facility next to its existing plant near Eagle Grove. Public outcry kept Sparboe from building near Clear Lake. Wright County economic development director Dennis Bowman says it’s a positive move for the county.Bowman says Sparboe’s current one-point-two-million hen operation near Eagle Grove has drawn very few complaints.Bowman says landing a value-added ag venture is very important for a rural county like Wright County. He says Sparboe officials plan to take an aggressive approach in addressing the problems caused by poultry manure.The county has one of the state’s largest collections of hog confinements and chicken facilities. The current Eagle Grove facility has a permit for one-point-six million chickens and the company will need to apply for a state permit to expand the capacity to three-point-three million hens. The new facility would provide eggs to Cargill’s Sunny Fresh Foods plant in Mason City.
