Blue Diamond presents timeline of Sacramento factory layoffs before 2026 closure
WE’RE ALSO FOLLOWING THIS AT FOUR DEVELOPING STORY IN SACRAMENTO. BLUE DIAMOND ANNOUNCING IT’S SHUTTING DOWN ITS PLANT IN MIDTOWN. THAT’S BEEN THERE FOR DECADES NOW. THE COMPANY IS STREAMLINING ITS OPERATIONS INTO ITS TWO OTHER MANUFACTURING PLANTS, AND HUNDREDS OF WORKERS WILL BE IMPACTED BY THIS. THANKS FOR JOINING US AT FOUR. I’M LISA GONZALEZ AND I’M CURTIS. MAY WE HAVE TEAM COVERAGE FOR YOU THIS AFTERNOON? KCRA 3 FINANCIAL EXPERT KELLY BROTHERS JOINS US TO TALK ABOUT THE FINANCIAL IMPACTS ON SACRAMENTO AND KCRA 3’S. DENEEKA HILL HAS THE IMPACT ON WORKERS. LET’S START WITH DENEEKA. YEAH. MIXED REACTION FROM EMPLOYEES OUT HERE TODAY. SOME SAD SOME OKAY WITH THE DECISION. MANY STILL JUST UNCERTAIN EXACTLY WHAT THIS MEANS FOR THEM. THOSE NEARLY 600 EMPLOYEES FILING INTO THE BLUE DIAMOND BUILDING IN MIDTOWN THIS MORNING. THEY TELL US PRODUCTION SHUT DOWN YESTERDAY AND THEY WERE TOLD TO BE BACK HERE TODAY. INSIDE THE BUILDING, BLUE DIAMOND OFFICIALS BREAKING THE NEWS TO THOSE EMPLOYEES THAT THE MIDTOWN PROCESSING PLANT WILL BE CLOSING DOWN. IT WILL HAPPEN IN PHASES OVER THE NEXT 18 TO 24 MONTHS. AN ESTIMATED 10% OF THOSE 600 EMPLOYEES WILL BE LAID OFF BY THE END OF THE YEAR. THE COMPANY SAYS THEY WILL TRANSFER MOST OF THEIR MANUFACTURING OPERATIONS TO ITS OTHER FACILITIES IN TURLOCK AND SALIDA. SOME EMPLOYEES WILL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO RELOCATE, OTHERS ARE BEING OFFERED SEVERANCE AND OUTPLACEMENT SERVICES. IT’S BASED ON ROLES, WHAT THE NEEDS ARE, YOU KNOW, AT THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE PLANT AND THE PROCESSING ACTIVITIES THAT HAPPEN HERE. SO THEY’RE ALL RECEIVING THAT INFORMATION TODAY ABOUT WHERE THEY FIT RIGHT IN IN THE 18 TO 24 MONTHS. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR YOU NOW? DO YOU STILL HAVE A JOB? I DO NOT HAVE ANY OTHER JOB. THIS WAS MY FIRST JOB. AND THEY HAVE. THEY GAVE US SOME SPECIFIC TIME TO LOOK FOR ANOTHER JOB, OR THEY TOLD US IF YOU AGREE WITH ANY OTHER LOCATIONS, YOU CAN WORK. AND IN A PRESS RELEASE, THEY CITED MAINTAINING THIS HISTORICAL BUILDING AS ONE OF THE REASONS FOR CLOSING. NOW, THE PLAN IS TO SELL THE BUILDING. SO WE DID REACH OUT TO SACRAMENTO MAYOR KEVIN MCCARTY. HE DID SEND US THIS STATEMENT IN CONNECTION WITH. COUNCIL MEMBER PHIL BAUM. THAT STATEMENT READS IN PART, WE LOOK FORWARD TO THE NEXT CHAPTER FOR THE 53 ACRE SITE SITUATED RIGHT NEXT TO THE RAIL YARDS, THE BLUE DIAMOND FACTORY IS PRIMED FOR A NEW LIFE AND NEW OPPORTUNITY FOR OUR STATEMENT. THAT STATEMENT ALSO DID GO ON TO THANK BLUE DIAMOND FOR 115 YEARS, IN PARTNERSHIP, AND THE CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS HERE WILL ALSO STAY HERE. THEY SAY THAT PLUS THE GIFT SHOP HERE WILL ALSO BE HERE. SO THEY DO STILL PLAN TO HAVE SOME ROOTS HERE IN SACRAMENTO, IN MIDTOWN, HERE IN MIDTOWN. DENEEKA HILL KCRA THREE NEWS. I MEAN, BLUE DIAMOND HAS REALLY BEEN THE PRIDE OF THIS AREA FOR SO LONG, DECADES AND DECADES. WE KNOW BLUE DIAMOND GROWERS IS THE LARGEST ALMOND COMPANY IN THE WHOLE WORLD. SO DID THEY MENTION ANYTHING ABOUT THE CURRENT TRADE CLIMATE? MAYBE. DID TARIFFS PLAY A ROLE IN THIS DECISION, OR WAS THIS OUR DECISION ALREADY MADE? YEAH, WE DID ASK THAT QUESTION DIRECTLY. AND THEY SAY NO, IT’S NOT RELATED TO THE CURRENT TRADE CLIMATE. THEY SAY THIS IS ACTUALLY SOMETHING THAT’S BEEN IN THE WORKS FOR A WHILE. I THINK THE MOST NOTABLE CHANGE IS THE CHANGE IN PRESIDENT AND CEO HERE IN BLUE DIAMOND. HE STARTED BACK IN 2023. AND THAT CHIEF MEDIA PERSON THAT WE SPOKE WITH EARLIER TELLS US THAT HE CAME IN WITH AN AGGRESSIVE PLAN TO STREAMLINE EFFICIENCY. AND THEY SAY THAT THIS CLOSING DOWN, THI
Blue Diamond presents timeline of Sacramento factory layoffs before 2026 closure
Updated: 3:49 PM PST Dec 17, 2025
A timeline of layoffs at Sacramento’s Blue Diamond facility has been released months after the company announced its eventual closure. (Video player above: Blue Diamond employees talk about impact of sudden Sacramento plant closure)In June 2025, Blue Diamond revealed a plan to consolidate its operations to the Turlock and Salida locations because the Sacramento plant became “costly and inefficient.” The decision to close the plant over the course of several months will impact hundreds of employees. The first phase of layoffs began on Sept. 1, with approximately 73 employees being laid off during a 14-day window beginning on that date, according to a release from Blue Diamond. The second phase begins on March 1, 2026, Blue Diamond said. Around 30 employees will be laid off over the course of 14 days, then the second phase will resume on May 1 and six more employees will be impacted.Sept. 1, 2026 will mark a third phase of layoffs affecting nearly 300 employees. That third phase will complete the closure of the Sacramento plant. “No one will have the right to bump or displace other employees, and there is no union representing the affected employees,” Blue Diamond’s statement said. To see the full list of job titles impacted, click here. See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
A timeline of layoffs at Sacramento’s Blue Diamond facility has been released months after the company announced its eventual closure.
(Video player above: Blue Diamond employees talk about impact of sudden Sacramento plant closure)
In June 2025, Blue Diamond revealed a plan to consolidate its operations to the Turlock and Salida locations because the Sacramento plant became “costly and inefficient.” The decision to close the plant over the course of several months will impact hundreds of employees.
The first phase of layoffs began on Sept. 1, with approximately 73 employees being laid off during a 14-day window beginning on that date, according to a release from Blue Diamond.
The second phase begins on March 1, 2026, Blue Diamond said. Around 30 employees will be laid off over the course of 14 days, then the second phase will resume on May 1 and six more employees will be impacted.
Sept. 1, 2026 will mark a third phase of layoffs affecting nearly 300 employees. That third phase will complete the closure of the Sacramento plant.
“No one will have the right to bump or displace other employees, and there is no union representing the affected employees,” Blue Diamond’s statement said.
To see the full list of job titles impacted, click here.
See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel