LOVELL, Wyo.—A crowd of about 800 of the Big Horn Basin’s sugarbeet farmers, current and past employees of Western Sugar Cooperative and their families celebrated the Lovell factory’s 100th anniversary at Armory Park on June 23.
“This factory has meant a lot to this valley from Cody to Greybull,” said Ric Rodriguez, a Powell farmer and vice-chairman of the Western Sugar Cooperative Board of Directors.
The Lovell plant alone brings an annual economic impact of $33.7 million—about $20 million of which goes directly to local sugarbeet growers, Rodriguez said.
“Even in down times, it helps get over the hump,” Rodriguez said.
Western Sugar’s total impact is $346 million between payroll, grower payments, purchases and property taxes across all of its six factories.
Source: powelltribune.com