What Does Rousselot's Plant Closing Mean For Peabody?

PEABODY, MA — Peabody Mayor Ted Bettencourt said he plans to meet with representatives from Rousselot Peabody Inc. about the company's planned closure of its Washington Street plant as the city determines what steps it can take to help the nearly 100 employees expected to lose jobs in the shutdown.

The company informed the city this week that it intends to wind down operations at the plant by the end of the year and that its decision was made to strengthen the company's portfolio.

While the city and residents have had a contentious relationship, at times, with the company based on complaints of strange smells emitting from the gelatin and collagen-product plant in recent years, the company is a significant employer and industrial taxpayer in the city.

"Certainly, the Rousselot closing is big news," Bettencourt told Patch. "My first thoughts are with nearly 100 Rousselot employees who will lose their jobs because of the plant's closing and how that will impact their families.

"It's too early to speculate about what the future will hold for the factory site and other Rousselot-owned properties."

Bettencourt told Patch his office will be organizing a team that will work with the company during the transition.

"My focus as always will be on protecting the best interests of Peabody residents and taxpayers," Bettencourt said.

Rousselot has been a Tanner City tenant since expanding their operations to Peabody in 2011.

A group of Peabody residents filed a class action lawsuit against Rousselot Peabody Inc. in 2020.

The lawsuit filed claimed noxious fumes from the company's Washington Street gelatin plant have plagued the neighborhood for several years and the company had not taken steps to address the problem.

The lawsuit claimed the odors smelled like "rotting flesh" and were so strong on warm days that residents can't stay outside their homes for extended periods of time. At least one of the plaintiffs in the class action said the stench caused headaches, vomiting and nausea.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)