#Saputo dairy plant to close in Glenwood

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The closing of a dairy plant in Glenwood, a village of 287 people south of Fort Macleod in southern Alberta, is expected to have a devastating impact on local employment opportunities and corporate tax base.
 
Montreal-based cheesemaker Saputo Inc. announced Wednesday it is closing four plants — including the one at Glenwood, another at Wetaskiwin in central Alberta and two in the United States — and shifting production elsewhere in its operations.
 
Gerry Carter, a resident of Glenwood for 22 years, told the Herald the Saputo plant with its storage towers on Main Street occupies the largest building in a village with few other businesses.
 
“There are a sizable number of people in town who realize their livelihood from that planet,” said the retiree. “There’s not a whole lot of work in this area, places to go find jobs.”
 
He said the plant laid off workers about 10 years ago when it stopped making cheese. He said it now is mainly involved in dehydrating milk to make powdered milk.
 
According to its website, Glenwood was founded 100 years ago by Mormon settlers and many of their descendants still live there.
 
In its news release, Saputo said a total of about 180 employees will be affected by the four closings, without offering a plant-by-plant breakdown.
 
Village administrator Kurtis Pratt said the Glenwood plant employs about 25 people.
 
“It’s going to be a big loss for us,” he said. “Saputo is our largest single employer and it was providing about 40 per cent of our total municipal operating revenues.”
 
He said Saputo was paying about $55,000 per year in property taxes and $60,000 in municipal utilities.
 
The U.S. plants are in New London, Wisc., and Hancock, Md.
 
The company says the workers will be given severance and outplacement support and some will be offered the possibility of transferring to other Saputo locations.
 
Saputo says costs connected with the closures will total about $19.8 million after taxes. The moves are expected to save about $4.8 million a year.
 
The company also said it expects to spend $35 million on new fixed assets in other Saputo plants in connection with the decision.
 
Source: Calgary

Mirá También

Así lo expresó Domingo Possetto, secretario de la seccional Rafaela, quien además, afirmó que a los productores «habitualmente los ignoran los gobiernos». Además, reconoció la labor de los empresarios de las firmas locales y aseguró que están «esperanzados» con la negociación entre SanCor y Adecoagro.

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