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Round Lake candy maker cuts 175 workers

Of the Round Lake plant's 325 workers, 175 were let go Thursday.

By DEE DePASS, Star Tribune

Last update: November 6, 2009 - 10:39 AM

The maker of JujyFruit, Now & Laters, Chuckles and Brach's said Thursday that it will move many of its Round Lake, Minn., operations to facilities in Tennessee and Texas by the end of the first quarter of 2010.

Farley's and Sathers said the cuts will affect 175 of the 325 employees at the plant a few miles from the Iowa border in southwestern Minnesota.

Workers were told of the news Thursday, said company spokeswoman Michelle Graber, adding that departures will be complete by March. The workers, who were offered severance packages, qualify for the state's Dislocated Workers Program, which offers job counselors, retraining and tuition assistance.

Farley's and Sathers' headquarters, packaging, warehousing and fleet operations now sit amid large stretches of Round Lake soybean fields. Going forward, the headquarters and 150 employees will remain in the town, whose population is under 500. The rest of the jobs will move to Dallas and Chattanooga in an effort to slash fuel, freight and production costs.

The company, which is owned by private equity firm Catterton Partners of Greenwich, Conn., also will open a marketing office in Chicago.

"The more central location is expected to help the company attract and retain top marketing talent," said Farley's President Denny Nemeth. "This new organizational structure is necessary to help ensure the company's continued success over the long term. However, such decisions are never easy."

Seven years ago, Farley's & Sathers was a tiny division of Kraft Foods and better known for its two-for-$1 and two-for-$3 bags of jelly beans, gummi bears, peach rings and spice drops that were packaged in Round Lake and trucked to convenience stores nationwide.

In 2002, Catterton bought the company and began acquiring a string of well-known candy and gum brands. The strategy pushed the firm's revenue to $250 million by 2003 and to $600 million by 2008.

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