NATCHEZ &8212; The Georgia-Pacific lumber mill in Roxie has suspended indefinitely any production at the plant, a spokesman for the company said Friday.

James Malone said company officials made the decision Nov. 15.

&8220;It does not mean a closing,&8221; Malone said. &8220;Production has been suspended, but things will be reviewed in mid-2007.&8221;

The reason for shutting down production is simple &8212; the market for the product is in a decline. Seventy people lost jobs due to the shutdown.

&8220;Overall, in all building products, the market has seen a reduction in prices and has been sluggish,&8221; Malone said.

The Roxie plant, along with the Gloster plywood plant, was re-opened by Georgia Pacific soon after Hurricane Katrina struck the southernmost part of the state.

The plants, both idle for about three years, were reopened in the fall of 2005 to take advantage of the 1.2 million acres of timber destroyed by the hurricane, about $1.3 billion in value.

The Gloster plant, which produces plywood, is not affected by the decision to curtail production at Roxie, Malone said. &8220;The Gloster plant is still going strong.&8221;

The mill at Roxie produces lumber used primarily in residential construction, Malone said.

&8220;Housing trends and housing starts are down. It&8217;s been a gradual pace downward over the year.&8221;

Malone said the Roxie plant will not be empty of employees. &8220;We ceased production, but we still had inventory to be shipped and some production to wrap up.&8221;

During the closure prior to 2005, the company maintained the plant and mill and kept a skeleton staff.

Georgia Pacific has 20 other plants in Mississippi, with about 3,500 employees in the state.

The company built the Gloster plant in 1967 and acquired the Roxie mill in 1973. The Roxie mill employed 100. The Gloster plywood mill employs about 350.