Hodgdon closes GOEX blackpowder plant

Muzzleloader fans, take note: On September 27, Hodgdon announced it was closing down its blackpowder production facility in Camp Mindon, Louisiana.

The plant is already closed down at this point, while Hodgdon figures out what to do next with its business. As per the press release:

Effective immediately, Hodgdon Powder Company, Inc. has made the decision to cease manufacturing operations at the company’s Camp Minden, Louisiana site while evaluating strategic options for the black powder business.

The business will wind down operations while an evaluation process on the future of the black powder business takes place.

So, production is already offline, and it doesn't sound like Hodgdon is going to start the factory back up again. However, it does sound as if Hodgdon is willing to sell the business to another company:

Strategic options for the GOEX and Olde Eynsford brands of black powder, along with the manufacturing capabilities, will include a potential sale of the business.

If someone else purchases GOEX and resumes production, that's very good news for muzzleloader fans; other plants in North America produce blackpowder substitutes, but GOEX was the only factory manufacturing the real deal.

Although actual manufacturing of blackpowder has ceased, Hodgdon says all employees affected by the closure will stay on until the end of the year, to properly close down the factory. No doubt that would help smooth out the process of a sale of the business as well.

GOEX is a long-standing pillar of the US shooting scene, with its roots going all the way back to the early 1800s, long before Hodgdon acquired it. Hodgdon itself has been around since 1947, and is a major player in North American ammunition manufacturing. Hodgdon did not explain the reasoning behind the plant closure; declining market share seems unlikely, since GOEX has no real exact competition, and the US is going gun-crazy right now, buying up whatever they can get. It's not a case of changing production focus, either; Hodgdon just seems to want to shut the plant down.

Perhaps a couple of high-profile safety incidents at the plant in recent years are to blame. Whatever the case, this does seem like a good opportunity for some other manufacturer to step in and either acquire the GOEX business, or start a new blackpowder manufacturing operation.