Huhtamaki announces more layoffs



Huhtamaki announces more layoffs


PORTLAND, Maine (From The Bangor Daily News) -- Waterville manufacturer Huhtamaki announced 30 additional temporary layoffs due to multiple factors and changes in customer demand.

The company said that it notified employees of the cuts on Monday. The layoffs take effect Feb. 1.

The announcement Monday comes after the company announced layoffs for about 30 employees at the end of 2015, tied to a drop in demand from restaurant chain Chipotle.

Huhtamaki makes compostable burrito bowls for the national restaurant chain, producing most of them at its Waterville plant.

Multiple instances of food poisoning at the restaurant have prompted Chipotle to review some of its practices and plan a one-day shutdown at all locations on Feb. 8 to address the problem.

Wess Hudelson, a spokesman for Huhtamaki, wrote in an email that the layoffs announced Monday are the result of multiple factors and customers.

The company had added about 100 employees in the last year, due partly to a new contract making compostable school trays for a consortium of some of the country's largest school districts.

After the layoffs taking effect Feb. 1, the company will have 445 employees, with 392 hourly and 53 salaried. That's above than the company's year-end employment for 2014, Hudelson wrote.