Just days after Sleepy Eye wrapped up Buttered Corn Days, the company that donates all of the sweet cobs for the annual summer festival announced plans to shutter the local canning plant, laying off all full-time and seasonal workers with it.
Del Monte Foods Inc. on Tuesday notified the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development that it will permanently close the Sleepy Eye location at the end of this year's harvest and packing season, shuttering a plant that opened in the Great Depression and has been a mainstay of the community for 89 years.
"The closing of Del Monte will have a tremendous impact on the community," said Sleepy Eye Mayor Wayne Pelzel. "This will have an impact on the school, on housing, on just a whole ton of things in the community. We are really saddened by this news."
The California-based company has scheduled the closure for on or around Oct. 21. All 69 full-time jobs and 294 seasonal positions will be eliminated. Layoffs will begin as soon as Oct. 2 and be staggered through next June as the plant finishes any remaining labeling, shipping and administrative work needed to close.
The closing is part of a broader decision by Del Monte's parent company, Singapore-based Del Monte Pacific Limited, to sell or close many of its U.S. assets. In addition to the plant in Sleepy Eye, the company will end production at its Mendota, Ill., plant, and sell its facilities in Cambria, Wis., and Crystal City, Texas.
The production will be moved to Del Monte's remaining U.S. plants.
"This decision has been difficult and has come after careful consideration. This restructuring is a necessary step for us to remain competitive in a rapidly changing marketplace," Joselito D. Campos Jr., chief executive of Del Monte Pacific Limited, said in a statement. "We are committed to doing all we can to provide the affected employees with resources and support."
It's the latest southern Minnesota vegetable-canning plant to face closure as consumer preferences shift toward fresh or frozen produce. Seneca Foods Corp. closed its peas and corn processing plant in Rochester last year, citing shifting consumer trends.