Updated: BREAKING: Hodgdon STOPS GOEX PRODUCTION
UPDATE: Hodgdon is committed to seeing the GOEX brand placed in good hands. We as a community need to help them find the right stewards for GOEX Blackpowder moving forward. Please continue your messages of support for GOEX so we can show buyers there is a worthwhile market for blackpowder in the states.
In a press release posted Monday, September 27, 2021 Hodgdon announced they are stopping production of GOEX Blackpowder immediately.
Hodgdon® Announces Closure of GOEX facility
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. 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. All affected employees will be retained through December 31, 2021 to assist in an orderly closing of the site and receive severance commensurate with their years of service to the company.
The Hodgdon Powder Co., Inc has been honored to have been a part of the GOEX Powder legacy and sustains a fond appreciation for sporting customers who have enjoyed shooting GOEX powders.
About Hodgdon Powder Company, Inc.
Established in 1947 by Bruce and Amy Hodgdon, today, sons J.B. and Bob have grown Hodgdon Powder Company into the largest US supplier of smokeless, blackpowder and blackpowder substitute propellants. The company distributes gunpowder under the Hodgdon®, IMR®, Ramshot®, Acccurate®, Winchester®, Pyrodex®, Triple Seven®, Blackhorn 209® and GOEX® brands.
Learn more about the brands at these websites - www.Hodgdon.com, www.IMRPowder.com, www.WinchesterPowder.com, www.Ramshot.com, www.AccuratePowder.com, or www.GoexPowder.com and connect with the Hodgdon brand on Facebook or YouTube.
The GOEX Brand has been a staple in the muzzleloading community since 1802 and until yesterday, it was the largest, if not only American made blackpowder. This news is potentially devastating to the muzzleloading community, which has seen record growth in the last two years. Hodgdon’s GOEX Brand seems to be the only muzzleloading business to not see this increase.
If Hodgon decides to shutter the brand and cannot sell it, the United States would be without an American made blackpowder for the first time since it’s inception, a concept hard to imagine for any student of history.
While there are several manufacturers in Europe who could take up the mantle and sell in the US market, and imported powder is great, my concern is with import laws. With the recent ban on imported ammunition we have seen in action how the presidential office can change the shooting sports market. Sure, Muzzleloading is a small sect of the overall shooting sports community, but a ban or limit on imported blackpowder (a low grade explosive) could effectively gut the muzzleloading community during a period of crucial growth.
As this news gets out, we expect to see a run on GOEX Blackpowder as enthusiasts do their best to round up the supply that remains on the market. I understand the concerns, but as always, please try to leave some for the next enthusiast if possible.
We are working hard here at ILoveMuzzleloading.com to organize a support campaign to share the need for GOEX Blackpowder here in the states. Stay tuned for more information later this week.
If we want to save GOEX Powder, and possibly the sport in the US, we must be kind in our comments and writing. Each comment should highlight the importance of US made blackpowder to muzzleloading enthusiasts, both for blackpowder sports, and the preservation of US History.