Beer Marketer's Insights - FOLO UP: Union Says It Was Blindsided by Nor-Cal Bev Shutdown; Hefty Lease Payment, Prime Decline May Have Pushed Copacker to Brink

Unions that were blindsided by abrupt shuttering of copacker Nor-Cal Beverage in Sacramento and Anaheim, Calif, said they were mulling lawsuits vs co's acquirer and operator Manna Beverages and some were predicting hefty state fine for failure to offer any advance warning of move. We'd reported Fri that twin closures would cost about 600 jobs between both locations but union reps told local CBS outlet that the number was over 800 with 400+ at each location. Long a production hub for brands ranging from Body Armor and Spindrift to Monster and Alani Nu energy drinks, Nor-Cal had been acquired from Deary family in early 2024. "There is no transparency or anything. They just shut the doors," Greg Ball, prexy of Nor-Cal Beverage Employees&#39; Union, told CBS. "We were totally shocked, totally stunned. Nobody was expecting any of this." Signs of change had been in air this past summer, when BBI heard that Manna, which operates a major Coke bottling franchise in Kentucky, was quietly soliciting interest in pickup of operation following passing of Manna founder, Ulysses "Junior" Bridgeman (BBI, Aug 14). It's possible word of those activities hadn't filtered down to union. As we'd noted at time, sale prospects were clouded by Manna's having earlier undertaken sale/leaseback deal with private equity player that left Nor-Cal no longer owning its land and buildings. It's not clear now what next step will be: it's possible buyer for one or both sites might still emerge or else assets may be sold off. While WARN act generally requires 60 days' notice of any closure or mass layoff, CBS cited letter that Manna had sent union saying "that uncontrollable circumstances will force the company to cease all operations at all locations on Oct 7, 2025 - and terminate substantially all employees." It cited Nor-Cal's underperformance and failure to pay off debts. As noted, unless facts show shutdown to have been forced by some kind of sudden emergency, Manna could be facing substantial fines for failure to offer 60 days' warning. It's not clear how serious union is about suing, or on what grounds it would do so.From what we've heard, any financial issues the copacker was confronting had intensified last month when, as part of financial restructuring, obligation to pay $1.6 mil in monthly lease payments had kicked in, per one contact outside co with knowledge of situation. This source said co owed over $100 mil, with landlord first in line to capture assets, and needed to fund over $30 mil in capital improvements next year. It's unclear what status is of massive 3d plant that Manna was constructing in Alabama at cited cost of $600 mil.Manna letter, per CBS report, indicated that it had tried unsuccessfully to sell the company but said "the company is out of time and money" and "these circumstances were not reasonably foreseeable." We haven't viewed letter but it's possible that one unexpected hitch was continued steep decline of Prime Hydration, a key client, and Nor-Cal was believed to have lost other contracts to regional rivals like BevPak. Union chief Ball said it had received no notice that Nor-Cal was having any financial issues, per CBS.We've reached out to Manna but not heard back, as we did not in Aug when sale rumor first surfaced. CBS Sacramento cited phone conversation in which Remy Spearman, vp of people & culture for Manna Beverages, "neither confirmed nor denied the plant&#39;s closure and responded 'no comment' to all questions, including when asked about potential WARN Act violations." For Sacramento, the closure comes just 4 months after almond processor Blue Diamond said it was exiting its century-long production presence there at cost of 600+ jobs as it consolidates operations in Central Valley growing region. So state capital's mfg base has been hard hit lately.

FOLO UP: Union Says It Was Blindsided by Nor-Cal Bev Shutdown; Hefty Lease Payment, Prime Decline May Have Pushed Copacker to Brink

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