Norfolk Southern delivers first rail cars to new Purina plant

Norfolk Southern Railway recently delivered its first rail cars at Nestle Purina PetCare's newest pet food factory in Eden, North Carolina.

The $450 million, 1.3-million-square-foot plant opened March 26 at what used to be a brewery. The facility is adjacent to an NS mainline.

On April 25, NS delivered its first rail cars to the site, according to an NS website post. Nestle Purina transformed the former brewery into a manufacturing operation for multiple pet food lines. The company is aiming for zero waste and all renewable electricity at the plant by 2025.

Shipping its feedstock ingredients by rail rather than truck is also part of Nestle Purina’s plan to reduce its carbon footprint.

In North Carolina, rail customers have reduced their carbon footprint by about 66.5% shipping by rail — the equivalent of removing 1.4 million trucks from highways, according to NS.