Marion, New York-based Seneca Foods Corporation, one of the most highly integrated fruit and vegetable processing companies in the United States, has announced that the company will be leaving the pear processing business and closing its Sunnyside, Washington apple and pear processing plant — and laying off 300 employees after October 5, 2019. The decision was driven by processor overcapacity and changing consumer tastes away from canned pears towards seasonal fresh fruit and off-season foreign imports.
A company spokesperson noted, “We haven’t been profitable there for a while. It wasn’t taken lightly, the whole thing. We had some seriously dedicated people there in Sunnyside.” It should be noted that the company also closed its peach processing operation in Modesto, California in 2018. The company plans to place the 265,000 square foot main facility and the nearby 225,000 square-foot warehouse on the market in the near future.
Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life, or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?