The Abridged version:
- The former Manna Beverages facility in West Sacramento has been purchased.
- Redwood Beverage Group, made up of two out-of-state companies, plans to reopen the facility and hire back employees.
- The president of the union that represented employees previously at the plant said he hasn’t gotten any communication from the new company.
The former Manna Beverages bottling plant, which abruptly shut down over a month ago and left hundreds jobless, has been purchased.
Redwood Beverage Group, a newly created partnership between Florida based 13th Floor Capital and Vancouver, B.C. based Tricor Pacific Capital, bought the West Sacramento facility on Nov. 13 and promised to hire back many of its former employees. The sale, which was facilitated by Harry Davis and Company, will allow Redwood Beverage Group to restart manufacturing operations at the plant with an eye toward becoming “one of the nation’s leading beverage co-packing companies,” the company said in a news release.
The facility, which had been owned by Nor-Cal Beverage for more than 80 years, was acquired by Manna Beverages in 2023. In October of this year, the Kentucky-based company announced that it didn’t have enough money to continue its operations in California, shuttering the West Sacramento factory in a matter of days.
Employees, many of whom had worked decades at the facility, were left reeling at the sudden loss of their jobs. Within weeks, some had filed a WARN Act lawsuit against the company, alleging it didn’t follow state rules requiring proper notice before mass layoffs.
Manna Beverages claimed an exemption from the WARN Act because it was actively seeking capital to sustain operations.
Nor-Cal Beverage union may resolve
Greg Ball, president of the Nor-Cal Beverage Co. Employee Union, said he’s uncertain what the reopening will look like.
“I’m hopeful that everybody gets their job back, but I think it’s just gonna be a while,” he said. Many of the former employees haven’t found a new job, so they’re hoping the facility gets up and running soon.
Ball hasn’t heard anything from Redwood since they purchased the facility, he said, but his understanding is that there is work to be done on the infrastructure before it can be fully operational. Some of the former mechanics have been extended offer letters to do that work, but most of the other employees are still waiting, he said.
“All I heard was that they’re shooting for January,” he said.
In the meantime, Ball said he is probably going to have to dissolve the in-house union, which has represented employees at the facility for decades. With a new tax year approaching and members unable to pay dues without jobs, there’s no money to sustain it.
At this point, the decision is in Redwood’s hands to decide whether to honor the collective bargaining agreement, Ball said.
“If they reach out to us before the end of the year and say ‘hey, we’d like to honor the contract,’ we wouldn’t dissolve it,” he said.
Abridged reached out to 13th Floor Capital, Tricor Pacific Capital and Harry Davis and Company to talk about plans. Representatives did not respond by time of publication.
Daniel Hennessy joins Abridged from the California Local News Fellowship. He’s a reporter covering Yolo County.