SALEM, Ore. — Founded in 1924, NORPAC is deeply ingrained in the fabric of Marion County.
But the farmer-owned cooperative has been embroiled in financial troubles.
It warned employees in the Salem area on Wednesday that about 900-workers will be laid off and it's planning to shut down the two facilities.
NORPAC filed notices with the state and sent letters to employees Thursday, warning it is planning to close its brooks cannery plant and re-pack facility in Salem.
This is a big deal for the whole community. Locals say you can talk to just about any second or third generation Oregonian there and they have a family member who’s worked at NORPAC.
Many workers KGW spoke with at the facilities on Thursday have been there for decades and don't know anything else.
With a looming cloud hanging overhead, Patrick Wiley is holding out hope another buyer will come along, mainly for the sake of his four-year-old son.
“Right now I’m keeping my head up and just focusing on my son,” Wiley said. “I’m not really thinking about that right now. I’m just focused on my kid. That’s what is getting me through so I’m not too worried about it, I still have hope.”
Wiley, a stacker at NORPAC's Salem facility for the last six years, and about 900 of his co-workers might lose their jobs come January.
After the organization announced it filed for bankruptcy, Wiley says he wasn’t too surprised to hear people would be cut.
“I just keep coming to work, do the work and don't assume anything because nothing is for sure yet,” stacker Tyson Juda said.
He was, however, shocked to hear he might lose his job, one he started a little over a year ago.
“I didn’t think this company would… end up in this route that we are in now,” Juda said.
The organization got here because a $155.5 million sale fell through last month.
Norpac filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in August. Court records show it owes more than $100 million to thousands of debtors.
It planned to sell its assets to Oregon Potato Company but the buyer pulled out in October, citing red flags and regulatory and environmental issues, according to the Capital Press.
In letters to employees President and CEO Shawn Campbell said, “While NORPAC has continued to have discussions with companies about purchasing some or all of NORPAC's assets, as of today NORPAC does not yet have a buyer. Additionally NORPAC has attempted to secure additional financing, but as of today has not been successful.”
Campbell goes on to say the company will keep looking for funding and other buyers, but he is required under federal law to send closure notices because there's no guarantee facilities will stay open.
These looming layoffs come after the organization cut 485 workers and closed its Stayton plant, meaning more than 1,400 people are expected to be out of a job. That's a large chunk of the food manufacturing industry in the Salem metro area; state employment statistics show in September there were 4,900 workers in that sector.
Employment data shows about 8,400 people were jobless in September. These new lay-offs will jack up unemployment numbers in the Salem metro area, which are hovering around a low four-percent.