Jelly Belly closing North Chicago plant, laying off 66 workers

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

“Last week, Ferrara announced the difficult decision to end manufacturing operations at our Jelly Belly plant in North Chicago,” the candymaker said in an emailed statement. “After careful review of the current volumes produced here, we are moving our manufacturing into another facility.” Jelly Belly’s other plant is in Fairfield, California, where the company is based.

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. The company has more than 2,200 employees at its five manufacturing facilities and Chicago headquarters.

“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,” Ferrara said.

Jelly Belly once made its signature product at the North Chicago plant before moving production in 2014 to Fairfield. It kept the North Chicago facility for private-label and contract candy production.

In May, Ferrara said the purchase of Jelly Belly and Brazilian sweets maker Dori Alimentos added nearly $500 million in sales for the 2023 fiscal year. The company, whose brands include Sweet Tarts, Brach’s and Chuckles, reported net sales of $1.8 billion last year, a 15% increase over 2022.

Ferrara’s acquisitions in the past 12 months increased its factories from seven to 14 in the U.S., Mexico, Brazil and Thailand. Its workforce also grew from approximately 4,500 to more than 8,000 globally. The Jelly Belly purchase added nearly 800 global employees and facilities in California, Illinois and Thailand.

Chicago's sweets industry has seen upheaval in the past year with Blommer Chocolate Co. closing its iconic factory in the heart of Chicago, citing increased operating costs at its aging plant at 600 W. Kinzie St.

Other sweets and food manufacturers have cited aging manufacturing facilities as major challenges. Ice cream and dairy company Oberweis filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in April after many business challenges, including underinvesting in manufacturing equipment and overspending on distribution.

Ferrara invested over $100 million last year to modernize its manufacturing facilities. The company has a corporate office in the Old Post Office. In 2021, it opened a distribution center with 500 workers in DeKalb.

Jelly Belly dates from 1869, when Gustav Goelitz started a candy business in Belleville, near St. Louis. It introduced its signature jelly beans in 1976, renaming the company after the candy in 2001.

This story has been updated to reflect the correct number of layoffs.