Golden Flake Chips’ Factory to Close

Utz Brands plans to close the Birmingham, Alabama factory that produces its Golden Flake potato chips this summer. The decision will lead to about 175 employees being laid off, reports AL.com. Around 100 employees will remain in distribution positions.

The decision to close the manufacturing facility in July surfaced in Utz’s April 24 SEC filing. Utz is expected to take $3 million to $5 million in pre-tax cash charges. Utz Foods Vice President Kevin Brick said it was a “difficult decision” to close the facility, but added that the Golden Flake brand name will continue to be used.

“Notably, the Golden Flake brand remains an important part of Utz’s portfolio, and our product offerings and partnerships under this banner are not changing,” Brick said in a statement. “We will continue to have a presence in Birmingham and will stay an active part of the community.”

Birmingham city leaders told WVTM they were shocked and disappointed by the news. “I was very disappointed, especially because we just found out this morning,” Birmingham District 6 Councilwoman Crystal Smitherman told the network Wednesday. “We didn’t even know, before they put anything out, that they were closing down the manufacturing part or releasing 175 people.” Smitherman added that the city will try to redevelop the property as quickly as possible.

“We are grateful to our Birmingham manufacturing colleagues for their many contributions to Utz,” Brick said in another statement to CBS42. “Our leaders have spoken to those associates directly, and we are committed to providing them with support throughout the next few months and through their transition to their future endeavors.”

Golden Flake Snack Foods was founded in 1923 in Birmingham. Most of the company’s products are available exclusively in the Southeast. Utz Quality Foods, based in Hanover, Pennsylvania, acquired Golden Flake’s parent company, Golden Enterprises, in 2016 for $141 million. The historic Golden Flake factory also produced Sweet Heat, cheese puffs, cheese curls, crackers, tortilla chips, and other popular snacks.

The Golden Flake factory isn’t the only historic potato chip facility to close this year. In February, the beloved Dayton, Ohio company Mikesell’s announced it was going out of business. Some employees posted on social media that the Dayton plant would close that month, reports the Dayton Daily News. Mikesell’s later reached a deal with Conn’s Potato Chips to keep the brand name alive, and its chips will be produced in Zanesville, Ohio. In March, fans lined up for hours to get some of the last cases produced at theDayton facility.