Fulton MFA Agri Services closing its doors

<p>Quinn Wilson/For the News Tribune</p><p>Fulton’s MFA Agri Services branch will close July 17. This branch is one of five that will cease operations by July 30.</p>

Quinn Wilson/For the News Tribune

Fulton’s MFA Agri Services branch will close July 17. This branch is one of five that will cease operations by July 30.

Fulton's MFA Agri Services branch will close July 17.

MFA announced June 26 that the company will close five of its retail operations. In addition to the branch located on East Saint Eunice Road in Fulton, the affected branches include Bronaugh, Columbia, Essex and Springfield.

"This decision comes from a multi-year analysis of how MFA can best deploy its assets," Craig Childs, MFA senior vice president of retail operations, said in an MFA news release.

According to the Fulton branch's bookkeeper, Glenda Locke, the branch is in need of many repairs and is "outdated."

"When this was built, it was built for the smaller trucks. Well, the bigger trucks can't go in and out too well," said Locke, an employee at the branch for 20 years.

According to the MFA, only four positions were eliminated by these branch closings. Locke said four of the five employees at the Fulton branch were not retained by the MFA, herself included.

"I'm not sure what I'm going to do," Locke said. "I may retire, but I'm not sure."

Steve Fairchild, MFA's director of communications, was not able to comment on the specifics of the eliminated positions. He said some employees at the closing locations were offered jobs at other MFA branches.

Customers of the Fulton branch will be redirected to the Cedar Creek branch in Millersburg. Other nearby branches in Jefferson City, Mexico and Centralia will continue to operate. MFA feed products are also available at Kingdom Feed on North Bluff Street in Fulton.

All five shuttering MFA branches will cease operations by July 30.

Fairchild said there are no plans to close any other locations, including the Jefferson City location, which has been closed due to flooding since late May. He said they are still working on recovery for the location and its future is unclear, but there are no plans to completely close it.

News Tribune reporter Emily Cole contributed information to this article.