By Myrna Trauntvein
Times-News Correspondent
Kuhni said he thought that a visit to the Provo animal
rendering plant would eliminate some of the fears of the
planning commission. Therefore, he was pleased, he said,
to host a visit to the Provo facility.
A visit to the plant will be made on Friday and all
members of the planning commission will be in attendance.
Because the commission is investigating and viewing the
animal rendering business does not mean that locating a
facility in Juab County is a done deal.
"It would be good to have the tax base and to have
jobs for people from our area, but if it (the animal
rendering plant) smells I don't want it," said Jim
McWilliams, planning commission chair.
In addition to McWilliams, Russell Mangelson, Wallace
Ballow, and Art Cornish sit on the commission. Even
though a two to three day non-pleasure trip is being
planned, all are willing to be called upon to visit the
Boston-area plant.
If the plant were to receive permission to build south
of the Juab County Jail, planning commission members
think it would be better if the animal rendering business
use Nephi City sewer system to dispose of water
originated in the rendering process.
"It would take two miles of sewer pipe to reach the
trunk line at the south freeway interchange by the jail,"
said Steele. "It may be better to use the money you might
use in constructing waste-water ponds to improve the city
system and do away with the ponds in your design."
In fact, he said, the south interchange could use the
extra water to flush the sewer lines in that
area&emdash;something that does not occur on a regular
basis at that location.
"We discharge 220,000 pounds of water in a month,"
said Kuhni.
In addition to water owned locally, the business is
working with the state to transfer some of the
company-owned water rights to the project.
Kuhni said he thought a short course in animal
rendering would be helpful to the planning commission
and, therefore, presented an explanation of the process
to the commission.
"We serve the meat industry," said Kuhni. "Most of our
animal matter comes from the bone and waste of the meat
industry."
In addition, the restaurant industry contributes
animal grease which is used in the tallow-making
process.
Of the total, dead animal carcasses represent just 1
percent.
"We do not accept an animal that has been dead for
more than 24 hours because it affects the quality of our
finished product and also creates a smell," he said.
The plant has five cookers and, after that process,
the meat and bone meal goes through a press where the fat
is removed. The press dries out the remaining material
and the end product is a light, fluffy brown powder.
Approximately 1,200 pound and hour goes through the
press.
In the press, about half of the moisture is driven
out. Through the condenser attached to the cookers,
approximately 85 percent of the water is drawn off. The
rest of the moisture goes through a scrubber.
The scrubber also takes the room air through the
cleaning process.
At the Provo plant, room air which contains some
cooking odors, is kept inside the facility by negative
pressure and that air is cleansed.
"At the new plant we are proposing constructing a
continuous cooker system," said Kuhni. "At the new plant
everything will be closed."
The system will eliminate the odor in the room
air.
The reason the company is interested in access to the
railroad, said Kuhni, is that they import some finished
product in order to meet the demands in the state.
"There is a shortage of rendered products so we have
to import some of the finished product but the rail will
also give us the ability to export," said Kuhni.
Products of the plant are meat and bone meal used in
feed and tallow used by a variety of industries.
