REGIONALREPORT Eastern
The spoils of war
Preparing for conflict might be pessimistic, but it’s profitable. The military’s impact on gross state product in 2013 is estimated at about $48 billion — 12% of the total — according to a recent report from the N.C. Department of Commerce. That number casts a wide net, including spillover from other states, so the most direct indicator is Department of Defense spending, and the vast majority of its contracts went to companies in eastern counties during fiscal 2012. In fact, of the top 10 counties in terms of contract value, seven were in eastern North Carolina, which is home of every major military installation in the state.
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CURRIE — RC Creations, a division of New York City-based Acme Smoked Fish, will open a plant here, investing $25 million and creating 120 jobs within four years. The company will import seafood to the Pender County plant, which will process it into ready-to-eat products.
FAYETTEVILLE — Hanesbrands will close Maidenform’s local distribution center, laying off 285 by late 2014. The Winston-Salem-based apparel-maker, which bought its Iselin, N.J.-based competitor this year for $583 million, will consolidate Maidenform’s North Carolina distribution center into its ones in Forsyth and Cleveland counties.
JACKSONVILLE — N.C. State University will sell its 79,000-acre research forest near here to the family that owns Danville, Ill.-based agribusiness Walker AG for $150 million. Students will still be able to conduct research on the property, but critics worry the deal will lead to development that could harm the environment and claim the university failed to solicit enough public input. Proceeds of the sale will pay for an endowment for the school’s College of Natural Resources.
WILMINGTON — Fox Broadcasting renewed TV drama Sleepy Hollow, which is filmed here at EUE/Screen Gems Studios, for a second season. Produced by Los Angeles-based 20th Century Fox Television, the series employs about 200 locally. Production of the first season is expected to wrap by year-end.