Anheuser-Busch closes Eagle Snacks subsidiary, sells four plants to Frito-Lay.ST. LOUIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 7, 1996--Anheuser-Busch Companies Inc., announced Wednesday it will close its Eagle Snacks subsidiary. The company also announced that it will sell four of its closed plants to Frito-Lay Inc. Subject to regulatory approval, the closed Eagle Snacks plants in Robersonville, N.C., Fayetteville, Tenn., Visalia, Calif., and York, Pa., will be purchased by Frito-Lay for an undisclosed amount. Anheuser-Busch will continue to operate Eagle s Hyannis, Mass. plant for 60 days while it seeks a buyer for that facility. All salaried and non-union hourly employees at Eagle s St. Louis headquarters, field sales, and plant locations will be offered a separation package that includes severance pay Severance Pay Compensation that an employer gives to someone who is about to lose their job. Notes: Severance pay is not always paid to employees. It depends on the situation in which the employee is losing their job and whether legislation requires severance to be paid. , transitional health benefits and outplacement out·place·ment n. The process of facilitating a terminated employee's search for a new job by provision of professional services, such as counseling, paid for by the former employer. services. Terms of separation for union employees will be handled with union representatives. "We have a skilled, talented workforce, and we appreciate the valuable contributions they have made to our company," John E. Jacob, executive vice president and chief communications officer The chief communications officer or CCO is a job title for the head of communications, public relations and/or public affairs within an organization. Most typically, the CCO reports to the chief executive officer (CEO) of a corporate entity or president of an operating unit. , said. "We would have preferred to preserve Eagle in its entirety as an ongoing business, but this proved to be impossible. "Under these circumstances, we chose a course that we think will provide the best future opportunity for the most employees and for our plant communities." Eagle Snacks plans to continue operations at its facilities in February to meet current obligations. Following regulatory approval, Frito-Lay plans to retool re·tool v. re·tooled, re·tool·ing, re·tools v.tr. 1. To fit out (a factory, for example) with a new set of machinery and tools for making a different product. 2. the four plants it is purchasing. Current manufacturing personnel will be given first consideration for hiring when the plants reopen re·o·pen tr. & intr.v. re·o·pened, re·o·pen·ing, re·o·pens 1. To open or be opened again: Officials reopened the airport after the snow was cleared. Schools reopen in September. . This process could take several months. "When completed, the actions announced today will take us out of the snack food business," Jacob said. "This step is part of a broader restructuring restructuring - The transformation from one representation form to another at the same relative abstraction level, while preserving the subject system's external behaviour (functionality and semantics). announced last year that will enable us to focus attention on our core operations in domestic and international brewing brewing: see beer. , family entertainment, and packaging." Anheuser-Busch will retain the Eagle trademark, and will continue to seek a purchaser for its salted nut business as well as the Hyannis plant, which makes Cape Cod potato chips Cape Cod Potato Chips is a snack foods company most famously know for their brand of potato chips. It is headquartered in Hyannis, Massachusetts, on Cape Cod. According to the company, Cape Cod Potato Chips was founded in 1980 by Steve and Lynn Bernard. and popcorn products. Anheuser-Busch announced in October, 1995, that it would exit the snack food business as part of a general restructuring to increase shareholder value. The company established Eagle Snacks Inc., in 1979, but it has not been profitable and lost $25 million in 1995. CONTACT: Anheuser-Busch Companies Inc., St. Louis James Morice or Paul Wagman at 314/982-1700 |
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