Florida's Natural To Close Umatilla Facility

    Officials with Florida’s Natural this week announced the company plans to sell its Umatilla plant. The company, which employs just over 80 people at the SR 19 facility at the south end of town, is planning to consolidate its packaging and storage operations at its home facility in Lake Wales.
    “We have decided to put it up for sale,” said Nikki Hayde, Senior Marketing Manager for Florida’s Natural. “This is a way for us to help our overall performance and help our growers.”
    The firm, which is owned by a group of members that includes the Umatilla Citrus Growers Association, has operated the Umatilla facility for nearly decades, after purchasing the property that had previously housed Golden Gem Growers. Operating the plant for juice storage and packaging purposes, Florida’s Natural currently employs 83 people here. The company produces approximately nine million cases of product in Umatilla each year.
    Hayde said the plant hasn't been officially put on the market yet, and the company plans to operate it while it remains for sale. After a sale, Florida's Natural could continue to operate at the site for a period of time.
    “We’re probably looking at 6-9 months after the sale,” Hayde said. “We will continue to use it as a co-manufacturer.”
    Employees at the Umatilla plant were informed of the plan late last week.
    The site has been used for some form of citrus production since it was built in the 1960's by Golden Gem. That firm packaged citrus and manufactured citrus-related products until late last century. Florida's Natural purchased the site after Golden Gem's demise, and has used it to store its juice products as well as package juice for retail sale.