Pilgrim’s has announced that it is no longer pursuing a pet food ingredient rendering plant in Alabama. The proposed plant would have been built in Gadsden, on land currently owned by the Gadsden Airport Authority.

“Pilgrim’s regrets that it will not have the opportunity to contribute to the economic development of Gadsden,” Cameron Bruett, the company’s head of corporate affairs, said in a statement to The Gadsden Times.

Opponents to the rendering plant had been vocal in their opposition to the proposal, even offering to buy the land from the GAA. Lawsuits aiming to stop the project had also been filed, claiming that the smell would be a nuisance to the neighborhood and that traffic could disrupt airport operations. The GAA voted to reject the Pilgrim’s proposal and the opposition offer in a meeting on December 17.

Pilgrim’s said in its statement that it has filed to dismiss pending litigation concerning the project.

Source: AL.com, The Gadsden Times