NATCHEZ — Mississippi River Pulp will be shutting down its Natchez mill Oct. 31.

The closure will affect 79 hourly and salaried employees, whose termination goes into effect the day of the closure.

In a news release Wednesday, the company said demand for its recycled fiber products has failed to materialize in a meaningful way since MRP purchased the Natchez mill from Mississippi River Corporation in 2010.

MRP has sought a buyer since the beginning of the year, and Vice President of Manufacturing Lynn Patt said the company’s owners are still speaking with interested groups about the possibility of selling the mill.

MRP is a paper pulp recycling facility.

Before being bought in May 2010, MRP was Mississippi River Corporation, which had filed for bankruptcy in February 2010, citing low demand for its products as one of the factors for bankrupcy.