A week after Del Monte Foods acquired Sager Creek’s Oconto Falls operations, the company announced it would close the facility and a canning plant in Pulaski, laying off 14 workers in Oconto Falls and affecting more than 200 jobs overall.
Del Monte acquired Sager Creek Vegetable Co. on March 11 and on Thursday announced it was consolidating its Wisconsin operations by closing the Pulaski and Oconto Falls facilities.
A call to Del Monte’s San Francisco-based headquarters was not returned by deadline. The company is one of the country’s largest marketers and processors of branded food products. It released a statement with its closure announcement.
“We thank the employees of these facilities for their efforts, and the community of Pulaski for its support of Sager Creek,” said Dave Withycombe, chief operations officer, Del Monte Foods Inc. “This decision was difficult, but will ultimately allow Del Monte to maintain a strong grower and manufacturing presence in Wisconsin.”
The Pulaski plant canned corn, peas and green beans. Its workforce swelled from 41 workers year round to more than 200 during summer months.
Labeling and warehousing took place at the 160 Hank Marks Drive plant in Oconto Falls, where 14 were employed, according to the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development.
Del Monte said it would permanently close the Pulaski plant by May 30 and the Oconto Falls facility by June 15.
Oconto Falls City Administrator Vicki Roberts was unavailable for comment Friday afternoon. A phone message left with the Oconto Falls Area Chamber of Commerce was not returned before deadline.
Efforts to contact personnel at Del Monte’s Oconto Falls and Pulaski plants were not successful.
Del Monte said it was working with local official to help employees laid off by the plant closings.
The DWD‘s Dislocated Worker Program assists those laid off with their job search and employment retraining. The Bay Area Workforce Development Board will coordinate those efforts. Additional re-employment resources are available at the state’s Job Centers.
The Oconto Falls plant was owned and operated by Allen’s Inc., an Arkansas-based food processor, until it declared bankruptcy in October 2013. Allen’s laid off seven workers at the Oconto Falls plant and about 100 at the Pulaski plant in early 2014.
Allen’s had marketed vegetables under the Fresh-Like, Veg-All, Trappey’s, Allen’s and Popeye Spinach brands.
The 87-year-old Allen’s was acquired by Sager Creek Acquisitions Corp. in 2014 in a $160 million deal and changed the name to Sager Creek Vegetable Co., according to the Arkansas Business publication.
Del Monte purchased Sager Creek’s assets for $75 million this month, according to the Tulsa World.
Changing consumer preference for fresh food over the years left more canned goods on the grocery shelf and may have been a factor in Del Monte’s plant closings. Consumers do value canned vegetables for their price, convenience and long storage life, according to the NPD market research firm.
A University of California-Davis study found that nutrient levels are not significantly different between canned and fresh foods. Michigan State University researchers also found that some canned foods provided “nutritional advantages,” according to the Bloomberg News Service.
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