Diamond Crystal plant in Perrysburg Township to close at end of June

5/24/2013

A Perrysburg Township packaging plant will close after an agreement expires that allows the plant's owner, Hormel Foods Corp., to sell Splenda sweetener.

Jeff Ettinger, Hormel's chairman, president, and chief executive, made the announcement Thursday in a conference call with financial analysts, according to a report by FoodBusinessNews.net. The trade publication reported that the agreement allowed Diamond Crystal Brands, which is part of Hormel, to sell Splenda sweetener. But the brand's owner, Johnson & Johnson, decided to handle the product itself after the contract expires at the end of June.

"[We] regret to report that this loss of business will necessitate Diamond Crystal's closing of its Perrysburg, Ohio, plant," Mr. Ettinger said, according to the trade publication.

Workers at the Diamond Crystal Brands facility on Oregon Road are represented by Local 75, United Food and Commercial Workers. A union spokesman declined to comment. A Hormel vice president of special products said 126 employees at the Perrysburg Township plant will be affected, according to The Blade's media partner, WTVG-TV, Channel 13.