ADRIAN, Mich. – After more than a year, an agreement has been reached in a fight against the “horrible” stench from a powdered egg plant in Adrian.
Residents said the Crimson Holdings plant in Adrian creates an awful odor around town that affects everyone, including businesses.
“There are people coming in saying it smells like something is dead out there,” barista Martina Luce said.
“I’ve used the term ‘smells like death’ in the past,” Adrian city manager Greg Elliot said. “Probably the worst odor I’ve ever smelled coming out of there on a daily basis.”
Crimson Holdings makes egg powder for the pet food industry, and the plant is right in the middle of town.
Lawsuit
“It seems as if they want to put profits before people,” attorney David Durbin said. “You should not have walked into this community with background knowledge that they should have had an egg processing plant without realizing that processing these eggs is going to create a horrible odor.”
Durbin represents Adrian residents in a class-action lawsuit against Crimson Holdings. The lawsuit says the company “failed to employ adequate odor mitigation strategies.” Residents said their homes continue to be “physically invaded by noxious odors” from the plant.
Adrian officials tried to get Crimson Holdings shut down after receiving hundreds of complaints from residents. The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy issued eight violations against the company.
In June, Crimson Holdings received a violation after EGLE reported that odors up to a mile downwind of the plant were affecting residents and commercial businesses.
Terms of agreement
A legal agreement was filed Tuesday, July 18, 2023, outlining a deal between the two sides. Crimson Holdings will only operate between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. until 45 have passed after an odor scrubbing machine is installed. That machine is expected to fix the odor.
Crimson Holdings has also agreed to pay the city’s attorney fees and give the city $100,000.
“Well, frankly, we shouldn’t have gotten to this point,” Durbin said.
City officials said they’re happy with the agreement. It allows Crimson Holdings to stay in business while giving residents relief from the smell.
As part of the agreement, the city is required to share all future odor complaints with the company.
If the odor scrubbing machine doesn’t work, Crimson Holdings will be back in court.
In an email statement, Crimson Holdings said it is “committed to mitigating odor from the facility” and will “continue to work with the city, its residents, and the state to resolve the issue and address their concerns.”
We are grateful for the opportunity to work with the city to come to an agreement on odor mitigation strategies for the facility. These decisions were made after careful consideration, collaboration and commitment to significant investments at the facility that will improve our operation and mitigate odor. Throughout this process, we did not take these conversations and feedback lightly. Since opening our doors, we’ve remained committed to being good neighbors in the community and economic driver in the city. We look forward to continued progress at the facility and outreach in the community.
Crimson Holdings
