Butterball LLC said Thursday it will close its bacon processing plant in Montgomery and cut about 600 full-time jobs by July 17.
North Carolina-based Butterball said the closure is due to “changing market conditions” and “consumer needs.”
About four years ago, Butterball bought Montgomery-based Gusto Packing Co., a maker of pork and turkey products under private labels for retail and food services nationwide. At that time, Butterball said it was looking to use the family-owned business to support its geographic expansion plan and manufacture innovative products.
Gusto, founded in 1972, operates at 2125 Rochester Drive, in Montgomery, located near Aurora.
Overall, the 60-year-old Butterball has about 7,000 employees who produce about 1 billion pounds of turkey products annually with processing facilities in North Carolina, Arkansas and Missouri. Once Montgomery closes its 260,000-square-foot facility, Butterball will no longer have processing plants in Illinois.
Read more about about Butterball’s closing at the Daily Herald.
