New Willow Brook owner to close local plants, lay off 780

Cargill’s purchase includes Springfield-based Willow Brook’s local operations, Schweigert Foods in Minnesota, and Willow Brook’s brands, according to a Cargill news release. Cargill is a business unit of Wichita-based Cargill Meat Solutions. Cargill spokesman Mark Klein would not diclose terms of the sale.

Within four to six months, Cargill will transition the turkey-processing operations from Willow Brook facilities in Springfield to plants in California, Mo., and Springdale, Ark. The Willow Brook plants at 501 N. Main Ave. and 405 N. Jefferson St. in Springfield will close.

“High feed and energy-related costs have made it difficult for Willow Brook to continue operating,” Willow Brook President Mike Briggs said in the release. Briggs was not available for comment, and a company representative referred questions to Klein.

Klein elaborated on Briggs’ reason for selling the company, adding that 65 percent of the cost of raising a turkey is for corn and soybeans used in its feed, and those products have seen record-high prices in the last year.

Closing the Springfield plants is a cost-efficient measure, Klein said. The local Willow Brook plants are old and would have required a lot of capital investment to bring them up to what Cargill needs, he said, and having plants 90 miles north and 90 miles south of Springfield cancels out a need for the local facilities.

“While we know that makes sense from a business point of view, we know it’s going to affect a lot of people,” Klein said. “We’re trying to provide a soft landing.”

Klein said workers are being encouraged to apply for jobs at Cargill facilities, and relocation packages for jobs at the California and Springdale plants will be offered.

For employees who choose not to relocate, Cargill will provide outplacement services and, for some personnel, severance packages, according to the release.

Cargill will assume Willow Brook’s leases of a slicing facility and a distribution center in Springfield. Willow Brook’s agricultural operations, including the contract turkey production and Butterfield, Mo., feed mill and the Albert Lea, Minn., Schweigert cooked meat operation, will continue.