Jelly Belly closing North Chicago plant, laying off 66 workers

Jelly Belly Candy Co. will close its plant in North Chicago about Oct. 11 and lay off 66 employees, according to its Chicago-based parent company Ferrara Candy.

“After careful review of the current volumes produced here, we are moving our manufacturing into another facility,” the candymaker said in an emailed statement.

Jelly Belly’s other plant is in Fairfield, California.

The plant closure comes after Ferrara, which says it’s the largest sugar candy company in the U.S., bought the family-owned Jelly Belly for an undisclosed sum in November.

“For our 66 impacted employees, we are hopeful they will stay with Ferrara in different positions and are offering the opportunity to move to open roles in our five other Chicagoland manufacturing facilities,” Ferrara said.

“We anticipate no impact to the Jelly Belly brand, our products or service to our customers. Jelly Belly remains a critical component of our growth trajectory,” the company said.

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