Miyoko's Creamery to Close Plant in California

Questions for reporters to ask

As many of you know, my long-time friend and colleague Miyoko Schinner was removed from her own company by the board. Then came a lawsuit and eventually a settlement. (I served on the board for a few short months at her request.)

Last week came news that the company’s production facility in Petaluma, California is slated to close in January, with “up to 40” employees getting laid off. According to a statement from the company, as reported by the Santa Rosa Press Democrat: “the business needs to increase production and efficiency as the brand continues to grow.” In other words, they are turning all production over to “co-packers”, which are contractors hired to manufacture products according to the company’s specifications.

While this is very common within the food industry, given the history, I have a few questions that I would love curious reporters to investigate:

• What was the number of employees at the height of operations in Petaluma?

• The company says their headquarters will remain in Petaluma. What does this mean? How much rent will be paid to maintain the headquarters there?

• What about staff from other departments? Marketing? Sales? Is there still an R&D department? How many staff are left overall?

• Are all office workers still working in Petaluma? Are some remote? If so, how many?

• What are the current salaries of top executives?

• Who are the co-packers and where are they located? How much do they get paid as compared to the workers in the plant?

• Will the co-packers maintain the same quality standards that consumers expect?

• What are current sales? How has the company been doing under new leadership?