Blue Diamond Growers plans to wind down its historic midtown Sacramento, Calif., almond processing plant over the next two years and transfer most of its work to existing facilities in Turlock and Salida, Calif. The cooperative will continue to be headquartered in Sacramento.
“The challenges of running a plant from these historical buildings has become too costly and inefficient,” said President/CEO Kai Bockmann. “Streamlining our manufacturing plants is the right business move to further strengthen our market-leading position and bring increased value to our grower members.”
The move will begin later this year when roughly 10% of plant employees will exit. The move will then take place in phases during the next 18 to 24 months. An estimated 600 team members will be impacted.
The co-op is providing incentives to employees to stay during the transition, as well as severance and outplacement services; some workers may be able to work in other locations.
About the Author
Dave Fusaro
Editor in Chief
Dave Fusaro has served as editor in chief of Food Processing magazine since 2003. Dave has 30 years experience in food & beverage industry journalism and has won several national ASBPE writing awards for his Food Processing stories. Dave has been interviewed on CNN, quoted in national newspapers and he authored a 200-page market research report on the milk industry. Formerly an award-winning newspaper reporter who specialized in business writing, he holds a BA in journalism from Marquette University. Prior to joining Food Processing, Dave was Editor-In-Chief of Dairy Foods and was Managing Editor of Prepared Foods.