US meatpacker Agriprocessors files for bankruptcy protection¤

A kosher slaughterhouse in Iowa has filed for bankruptcy protection, blaming a May immigration raid for financial difficulties. Agriprocessors' move to file for bankruptcy reorganization protection on Tuesday comes a day before the meatpacker was to meet in court with its biggest lender, First Bank of St. Louis. The bank is seeking to foreclose on the plant and appoint a third party to oversee Agriprocessors' assets. The bankruptcy filing says Agriprocessors owes $50 million to $100 million to creditors. The plant was the site of a May 12 immigration raid in which 389 people were arrested, among the biggest in US history. A lawyer for the company did not immediately return a call Wednesday seeking comment.