Post Holdings to Close Idaho PowerBar Manufacturing Facility

By Chelsey Dulaney 

Post Holdings Inc. said Thursday that it plans to close its PowerBar manufacturing facility in Boise, Idaho, by July, a move the packaged-food company said would affect 165 employees and save it about $4 million a year.

The St. Louis company, known for its Grape-Nuts and Fruity Pebbles brands, has been trying to diversify its business since its spinoff from Ralcorp Holdings Inc. in 2012. It bought the PowerBar sports nutrition business from Nestlé SA last year.

Post's latest decision comes as it has struggled with higher expenses in recent quarters, on top of the lackluster sales that have plagued much of the food-and-beverage industry as people opt for healthier, fresher options.

General Mills Inc. said in January that it was planning to close two Pillsbury dough factories, adding to the roughly 1,400 job cuts it had announced last year as it tries to improve profitability. Kellogg Co., meanwhile, intends to close a snack factory in Columbus, Ga., by the end of this year, and Coca-Cola Co. has said it would eliminate 1,600-to-1,800 nonfactory jobs this year in response to sluggish soda sales.

For its part, Post said the closure would impact 165 employees, to whom it has offered severance and transition assistance. Post said it would transfer PowerBar production to third-party facilities.

Post said the move was necessary to improve PowerBar's profitability. The company said it will book a $5 million pretax charge related to the closing, and that it expected to start seeing the estimated $4 million in savings beginning as early as October.

Write to Chelsey Dulaney at [e-mail]

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