Frito-Lay Shuts Down Processing at Rancho Cucamonga, California, Facility
PepsiCo has stopped production at a Frito-Lay processing plant in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., after more than 50 years in operation, according to local news reports. The company confirmed that manufacturing operations were ended at the plant. The warehouse, distribution and transportation portions of the complex would remain in operation.
The company said it would provide severance to the workers impacted, but it did not divulge the number of employees affected, nor the details of the severance packages. One news report noted that “hundreds of workers were let go” without an opportunity to transfer to other departments to keep their jobs, while another news report cited social media posts by laid-off workers saying they received 10 weeks’ pay as severance.
The Frito-Lay Rancho Cucamonga facility opened in 1970 and once employed Richard Montañez, the rags-to-riches former employee who claimed to have invented Flamin’ Hot Cheetos — and whose lawsuit against the company over the claim was dismissed two weeks ago.
