The future of California-based turkey company Zacky Farms is in question, as employees were sent an email from company founder Lillian Zacky that indicated jobs will be lost.
A copy of the email from Zacky, obtained by KMPH, stated: “After four generations and an enormous effort to keep the company in sync with the fast pace of changing times, we are no longer able to keep up with business as usual. We have put our best foot forward, but as we struggled in the current state of the industry conditions, it has been impossible for us to continue profitably.”
Zacky in her letter informed workers that the company would continue to process and deliver all Zacky Farms turkey products for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday.
But she also thanked employees for their hard work and dedication, and informed them, “You will be receiving a formal notification from Zacky Farms via mail concerning your individual employment status.”
The news of Zacky Farms’ financial troubles comes just five months after it secured a $25 million secured term loan from Great Rock Capital. The loan was obtained as a means to provide the company “with the capital needed to drive our continued growth as we remain focused on our commitment to bringing our customers the best quality of poultry one can buy,” Zacky and the company’s CEO, Tom Dahlen, jointly stated in a press release.
Zacky Farms has a history of financial struggles, as the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October 2012.
Farms processed 82.96 million pounds of live turkeys in 2017, making it the 18th largest turkey company in the United States. The business, headquartered in Fresno, California, has one slaughter plant, one processing plant and one hatchery, according to the WATTAgNet Top Poultry Companies Database.
The company's turkey products are marketed under the Zacky Farms Natural, Tender Gold, Westerner, Californian, Sam's Ranch, Zacky Farms ABF, Zacky Farms Free Range, Zacky Farms Organic, LillianZ Ranch ABF, LillianZ Ranch Free Range and LillianZ Ranch Veg Fed labels.
In May, Steve Burnham was hired as the chief operating officer and general manager of Zacky Farms.
