Schumer Urges Feds, State to Work to Keep Beech-Nut Plant in Canajoharie

Schumer Urges Feds, State To Work To Keep Beech-Nut Plant In Canajoharie

Recent Flooding, Combined With Need For Capital Improvements, Could Jeopardize The Future Of Plants

Schumer: Beech-Nut Is Vital To The Local Economy And We Must Work To Keep Them In The Mohawk Valley

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today urged the Empire State Development Corporation and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to construct an incentives package to save Beech-Nut's Plant in Canajoharie. Without assistance, the baby food producer could be forced to relocate due to financial challenges exacerbated by damage from recent flooding.

"Beech-Nut is a vital business in Montgomery County, and the federal and state government must roll up our sleeves and work to keep them in New York," Schumer said. "For over one-hundred years Beech-Nut has, purchased locally grown produce, provided jobs for the community and essential products for our children. Beech Nut has become part of the fabric of the community, and we must work to keep this company from relocating. The floods this summer were devastating for everyone, and now more than ever businesses need our help. I will continue to fight hard to keep the Beach-Nut Plant operating in Canajoharie."

As the nation's second-largest producer of baby food, Beech-Nut plays a vital role in the state and local economy. Beech-Nut has operated two factories in Montgomery County for one-hundred years- one in Canajoharie and one across the river in Fort Plain—and is one of the largest private employers in the area. Each year the company purchases more than $7 million worth of New York fruit each year and employs 350 New Yorkers. This facility now faces significant challenges and requires substantial assistance in order to maintain its New York operations and the jobs that come with it. Exacerbating this situation is the fact that the Canajoharie facility incurred significant damage from the recent floods. Without assistance, Beech-Nut may be forced to look to outside of New York for a new factory.

In personal letters to both Charles Gargano, Chairman of Empire State Development Corporation, and Steven Preston, Administrator of the SBA, Schumer wrote, "Until recently, the company was investing money in upstate New York and solidifying its commitment to staying in Canajoharie and Fort Plain. However, the floods and other challenges have set Beech-Nut back. Without new assistance, Beech-Nut may be forced to look to the South or Europe for a new factory. I urge you to work with Beech-Nut to construct a package of incentives so that this treasured business can remain in New York." Schumer has long been instrumental in Beech-Nut's success in upstate New York. In February 2000, H.J. Heinz, Inc. and Beech-Nut's parent company, Milnot Holding Corporation, announced a planned merger which threatened operations at both the Canajoharie and Fort Plain production plants. Schumer intervened with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and asked it to delay approving the merger until Heinz completed its review of the local plants. One week later, the FTC began its ultimately successful effort to block the merger. In the winter of 2002, Schumer also helped launch a new product line, called First Advantage, at the Canajoharie Plant.

http://schumer.senate.gov/SchumerWebsite/pressroom/record.cfm?id=260027&&year=2006&