MOSS LANDING—A Moss Landing company that has produced a variety of vegan foods since its inception in 2017 will close by May 6, laying off 104 employees.
In a March 4 Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notice to employees, Sweet Earth Foods said it plans to relocate the operations to Solon, Ohio.
The company, located at 3080 Hilltop Road, was purchased by Nestlé—the multinational food corporation headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland—in 2017.
It is not clear what will happen to the facility. A call to the number listed for Sweet Earth Foods said it was not set up to receive phone calls.
In an emailed statement, company spokeswoman Lauren Rubbo said the move will “help optimize production and utilization across our meals manufacturing network, as well as streamline delivery to our customers.”
Rubbo added that the Sweet Earth brand will remain part of the company’s portfolio.
According to Forbes, Brian and Kelly Swette founded Sweet Earth Natural Foods in 2012 to make vegan foods such as frozen burritos. The company eventually expanded, and by 2016 was selling its products in more than 10,000 stores and counted as partners national chains such as Whole Foods, Target, Walmart and Kroger when they brought in $25 million in 2016 revenue.
At its height, the company had around 200 employees.
