Missouri’s been having bad news on the employment front all year.
There have been several factory closures…
Followed by still more factory closures…
And unfortunately, the next wave of plant shutdowns to impact Missouri is taking shape…and it could be even worse.
More specifically, General Mills just announced plans to close three plants across the state:
- Pizza crust facility in St. Charles
- Two pet food plants in Joplin
We don’t yet have any word on how many hardworking Missourians will be laid off as a result of the plant closures, but these are pretty small towns (St. Charles has about 70,000 residents; Joplin, about 50,000) so even a smaller number of layoffs could have a big impact on the local economy.
While General Mills is of course best known for cereal brands like Cheerios, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and Cocoa Puffs – it also owns a variety of other brands with exposure to all kinds of other food sectors, including Betty Crocker, Bisquick, and Annie’s.
Unfortunately, the food industry as a whole has been under tremendous pressure as the trade war reduces foreign appetite for American exports – especially as anti-American boycotts ramp up.
And let’s face it – as American businesses lose these external markets, they pull back spending on things like jobs domestically…which means American consumers start tightening their belts…also reducing domestic demand.
This risks creating a feedback loop that could send the US into recession.
And of course, these are just recent issues piled on top of longstanding problems facing the food industry like cost inflation, labor shortages, and complicated supply chains.
So the fact that General Mills is cutting spending isn’t shocking. But it’s still a big problem for Missouri and the national economy more broadly.
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