Campbell Soup Co. will be closing two of its factories, one in Sacramento, California and one in South Plainfield, NJ. More than 700 employees are expected to lose their jobs. The closure of the two factories is expected to save the company millions of dollars.
The company- the soup cans of which were brought to fame by Andy Warhol's pop-art- has being seeing a decline in its sales, thanks to a decrease in the consumption of soup in the U.S. The two factories are being shut down in the name of reducing "excess capacity'" Campbell announced on Thursday.
"As we position Campbell for profitable growth, we must continue to optimize our U.S. plant network and diversify our manufacturing capabilities," Mark Alexander, president of Campbell North America, said, according to the Wall Street Journal. "We expect the steps we're announcing...to improve our competitiveness and performance."
Campbell introduced several plans and strategies to gain back profits and to increase sales of its soup. New, international and exotic flavors were introduced in the hopes of winning more customers. The plan worked to a certain extent as the company saw a rise in its sales by 9 percent for the first time in two years, as reported by the Los Angeles Times.
However, the rise in sales was not enough to save the Campbell Soup's oldest production factory in Sacramento. Built in 1947, the old factory has been responsible for the highest production costs for Campbell Soup Co., reports Associated Press. The Sacramento factory employs around 700 people, all of whom will lose their jobs. The production work will be redistributed to other factories around the country. The factory will be seeing closure in phases and will be completely shut down by next July.
A spice factory in South Plainfield, NJ, will be seeing closure too, laying off 27 employees.
The employees of the factories have begun to worry about making ends meet after the closure of the factory. While many were aware of troubles faced by the company and have been sending out resumes, many others were caught unawares by the news of the shut-down.
"I'm trying not to worry," said Julie Waldron, who has working in the factory for eight years, according to the Sacramento Bee. "I'm a fast learner. My job usually requires a high school diploma and a college degree, but I don't have either, and here I am, making $23 an hour at this job."
Many fear that they will lose their homes along with their jobs. Families will be seeing several members out of a job in the coming months, reports the Bee. Older employees will have more of a difficult time than the younger ones to learn new skills and to go out and look for another job.
But this move will enable Campbell Soup Co to save $21 million in the Fiscal year 2014, reports Wall Street Journal. This figure is likely to increase later.
