GREENFIELD, Ind. (AP) – One of the oldest meatpackers in the country says it will build a distribution center near Indianapolis, creating 260 jobs by the end of 2016.
 
John Morrell Food Group said Wednesday it plans to invest nearly $44 million to build and equip the 426,000-square-foot plant in the Greenfield area about 15 miles east of Indianapolis.
 
Hancock County Economic Development Council Executive Director Skip Kuker says the full-time jobs will pay an average wage of about $19.50 per hour.
 
John Morrell Food Group is a subsidiary of Virginia-based Smithfield Foods. It specializes in ham, bacon and other pork products and has 17 meatpacking plants across the country, including one in Peru.
 
The Indiana Economic Development Corp. offered Morrell up to $1.5 million in conditional tax credits and $250,000 in infrastructure aid.