'Good steward' Herbruck's expands

IONIA, Mich. (WOOD) - It's shiny and new, rising above cornfields -- an $11 million feed mill that is expected to add jobs to the state's biggest egg producer.

The last time Herbruck's Poultry Ranch was in the news, it was also over jobs -- many of them filled by illegal immigrants.

But a federal immigration source told 24 Hour News 8 that Herbruck's has made a dramatic turnaround.

"We've tried very hard to be a good steward, a good citizen," said Herbruck's President Stephen Herbruck. "We thought we were before, but as it turns out, we were able to improve that."

A federal inspection in February 2011 found 177 illegal immigrants among about 450 employees -- more than a third of the workforce, a source said.

They helped produce 1.5 billion eggs a year, for everything from Eggland's Best to Egg McMuffin sandwiches.

A follow-up inspection in August found no illegal immigrants, the source said.

"About 175 over about an 8-month-period that we replaced," Herbruck said.

The feds say Herbruck's has done better than many agricultural businesses in West Michigan.

"There were many workers who had 13, 14 years of service at Herbruck's," Herbruck said. "We're disappointed they're no longer here.

"All of these people before and after are all local people and good family people, and they're hard workers. They've done a good job for Herbruck's."

He said the company's biggest step was switching to E-Verify, a federal Internet-based system that allows companies to check if workers are in the U.S. legally.

"That's the tool we use to verify that each new employee has proper documentation," Herbruck said. "While we had documentation in the past, this is the way we're doing it now."

That as the company expects to grow -- thanks in part to the new $11 million feed mill.

On Tuesday, several hundred people -- including area farmers who sell their corn to Herbruck's -- were there for the unveiling and a tour.

Most of the corn comes from about 150 farmers within 80 miles of Herbruck's.

"It should improve the marketability of the corn, more places to take it, more volume, and it's close for me," said area farmer Matt Bennett. "As a farmer, this is great."

It's actually a pair of new feed mills -- one for organic eggs, the other for your regular eggs. It opened in July and will be in full operation by Labor Day.

"This particular addition is not where it creates so many jobs because of the automation," Herbruck said.

But, it likely will lead to expansion and more jobs down the road, he said.

"This is part of a strong agricultural footprint in Michigan regarding jobs," said U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, who was among the dignitaries at Tuesday's unveiling.

While Herbruck's didn't get any tax breaks for the project, it did get nearly $3 million in state, local and federal funds to improve roads to support the expansion, a state official said.