Representatives of the global food and agricultural company Olam said on Tuesday that the company’s decision to withdraw from the US dried parsley market had led to the closure of the Firebaugh plant and the layoff of 275 workers.
The dehydration plant produced dried onions and dried parsley, which were sold as ingredients to food manufacturers worldwide.
Singapore-based Olam Group reorganized its operations in 2020 and created two new subsidiaries. One of the companies, Olam Food and Ingredients, operated the Firebaugh plant. It continues to operate dehydration factories in Gilroy and Hanford in California, as well as in Fernley, Nevada, and Boardman, Oregon.
The other new spin-off company is Olam Agri, which focuses on food, feed and fiber category products.
Olam Food Ingredients or ofi is a major supplier of cocoa, coffee, dairy products, nuts and spices.
Julie Ketay, ofi’s North American communications director, said the decision to close the Firebaugh plant was not made hastily.
“Macroeconomic and market conditions led to the difficult decision to close Firebaugh and exit the U.S. parsley market,” she said. “Everyone is looking for the best ways to meet our customers’ needs.”
The plant will be closed in stages, with the first wave of layoffs beginning on August 30 and the last in December.
Next year the onions will be dried in one of ofi’s other facilities.
Ben Gallegos, Firebaugh’s city manager, said Monday that plant management told him the closure was not permanent.
But that is not the case, Ketay clarified. The plant will be closed permanently.
Gallegos said the loss of several hundred jobs is concerning for the residents who work there and for the community’s economy, including businesses that provide supplies and restaurants and stores where workers eat and shop.
He added that the impact also affects truck drivers who deliver the products to and from the factory, as well as workers on the farms who deliver the garlic and onions for drying.
Gallegos said the city is working with the state employment agency to organize job fairs and provide information and resources to affected workers.
Land records show that Firebaugh LLC, a subsidiary of Olam, owns more than 290 acres on eight parcels of land, including the plant and surrounding farmland. Buildings on the site total more than 500,000 square feet.
Ketay said she did not know the status of the property.
Reopening of the Firebaugh dehydration plant
