An Iowa-based turkey processor will be closing one of its eastern Iowa facilities in 2023, affecting over 300 employees.

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West Liberty Foods in Mount Pleasant first opened in 2003. Since then, the facility has produced millions of pounds of pre-sliced deli meats. However, after an announcement on Friday, Iowa City Press-Citizen reports that the Mount Pleasant facility no longer is meeting the needs of the company due to a reduction in demand for the product.

So, in 2023, the facility will start the process of shutting down, costing 350 people their jobs.

The employees of the Mount Pleasant facility will have the opportunity to continue working with the company. According to an article in The Gazette, “employees will be offered work at one of its other locations as well as provided with relocation and transportation services, stay bonuses… severance pay, re-employment services, and assistance with filing unemployment claims.”

According to The Gazette, the layoffs will happen in two phases; 130 will be impacted on December 31, and the remaining 220 employees will be let go in the second phase.

The equipment at the Mount Pleasant facility will be distributed to other facilities in Bolingbrook, Illinois., Tremonton, Utah, and West Liberty, Iowa.

The shutdown comes with a recent shift needed to support the products and capacities that are needed to continue to support its customers after a customer decided to move their deli slicing in-store.

This shift has resulted in a drastic reduction in pre-sliced deli meats, leaving this particular facility and its equipment unmatched to the company’s future needs and direction.

The operation of the Mount Pleasant facility will cease on May 7th, 2023.

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