Willow Brook closing dwarfs other layoffs

Cargill Value Added Meats said March 31 it has acquired certain assets of Willow Brook Foods and will close its two Springfield plants within four to six months.

Cargill said it will transition the turkey-processing operations from Willow Brook facilities in Springfield – 501 N. Main Ave. and 405 N. Jefferson St. – to plants in California, Mo., and Springdale, Ark.

While most of the job losses in recent months have occurred in the manufacturing sector, there has been some crossover.

Late last month, Butler, Rosenbury & Partners Inc. architecture firm cut 8.5 full-time equivalent jobs – or roughly 10 percent of its staff – in response to steadily declining billings since August. Also in March, Bass Pro Shops officials confirmed that the company had fired at least 11 employees as part of a companywide restructuring.

Missouri State University economics professor Tom Wyrick said businesses like BRP that are dependent on new construction, which has slowed locally and nationally, have a tough road ahead of them. The construction and durable goods industries have been hit the hardest in recent months, Wyrick said.

BRP Principal Tim Rosenbury said his firm is still pursuing a number of prospective projects, but he acknowledged that business is moving at a slower pace.

“We fully anticipate that some, if not all of them, will eventually come through for us,” Rosenbury said. “But in the meantime, we had to make the adjustments that we did.”

Willow Brook, which was sold to Kansas-based Cargill Value Added Meats, is facing a different economic demon in the form of rising feed and fuel costs. Wyrick said food-processing companies are struggling with high grain prices driven up by government mandates for biofuels. In turn, jobs end up on the chopping block.

“While we know that makes sense from a business point of view, we know it’s going to affect a lot of people,” Cargill spokesman Mark Klein said of the displaced workers. “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 a news release.

All told, Springfield seems to be holding up relatively well, Wyrick said, noting that the local economy has fared better than the state and national economies, according to recent statistics from the St. Louis Federal Reserve.

“Things are not – at this point – falling apart,” Wyrick said.