General Mills said it will close refrigerated baked goods (apparently Pillsbury dough) plants in New Albany, Ind., and Midland, Ontario, eliminating 500 jobs as part of an ongoing cost-cutting and efficiency program. New Albany, which has been run by General Mills since 1959, will account for 400 jobs, the other 100 from Midland, which has been operated since 1952. The wind-downs should be complete in mid-2016.
Cargill Inc. early in January began winding down a turkey and cooked meats processing plant in Springfield, Mo., moving the operations to Nebraska City, Nebraska, and Waco, Texas. The closing will affect 118 employees, although they will be offered severance packages and the chance to move to other Cargill facilities. The Springfield plant was among facilities acquired in 2008 from meat and turkey producer Willow Brook Foods.
The New York Times and other media reported in January Coca-Cola Co. would cut 1,600-1,800 jobs globally as part of $3 billion in costs it hopes to pare over the next several years. The company did not specify where or when the cutback will take place. The newspaper said Coca-Cola has not made adjustments to its business until now, while PepsiCo and Dr Pepper Snapple Group started making cuts a few years ago to deal with flattening soft drink sales. The company had 130,600 employees worldwide as of December 2013.
