Folger's To Close KC Coffee Plant

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The J.M. Smucker Company announced Wednesday it will close its Kansas City Folger's Coffee plant in the summer of 2012.The Kansas City plant is located at 701 Broadway St. and has been a downtown fixture for years. The Kansas City plant has 179 employees and the announcement was made at 8 a.m. to the employees at the plant.The company issued a release that said it will complete $190 million in restructuring, including the Memphis, Tenn., and Ste. Marie, Quebec, fruit spread plants and the Sherman, Tex. coffee plant. All of the coffee operations will be moved to a single facility in New Orleans."We are confident that this strategic decision is important for the long-term growth of the company," Tim Smucker, chairman of the board and co-executive officer, said. "However, it was difficult given the effect on employees, their employees, their families, and the communities related to the impacted facilities. We appreciate the contributions of our employees and are committed to treating them with fairness and respeect as we transition these facilities over the next couple years."The company said it is investing $70 million in its New Orleans coffee facility.