South Carolina abruptly loses another factory as downward spiral accelerates

South Carolina has had a rough 2025, no doubt about it.

Factories across the state have already been battered by plant closures and layoffs, and unfortunately the situation somehow keeps getting worse.

As the economy continues to dip, more and more companies are taking a good, hard look at their production and whether it should be trimmed.

And so, ADM recently shut down its soybean processing plant in Kershaw County as part of a wider cost-cutting push. The facility handled soybean crushing and meal production, and it had been a steady employer in the region for years.

ADM has been tightening expenses across its network as profit margins shrink in the food and agriculture sector. Rising energy costs, higher transportation expenses, and softer demand have squeezed processors nationwide. Soybeans haven’t been spared. Farmers have struggled with price pressure and unpredictable global markets for months, and processors have felt the squeeze right behind them.

And in the background, the larger economic picture hasn’t helped. International buyers have been pulling back amid the ongoing trade war environment, where tariffs and strained foreign relationships have pushed orders down. Slumping global demand has been matched by softening demand here at home, as American consumers cut back and companies shift production toward cheaper, more automated facilities.

For South Carolina, the closure of a soybean plant doesn’t just affect the people inside the building. Local trucking firms lose freight. Nearby farms lose a dependable buyer. Grain handlers, feed suppliers, and small service businesses suddenly see fewer trucks rolling in and fewer paychecks coming through. It adds up quickly in a rural area that depends on every job it can keep.

This has been a tough stretch for workers across the state, and this latest closure is another reminder of how fragile things have become in the food and agriculture economy. Please join us in wishing the impacted employees and their families well as they navigate the days ahead.

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