Seed company sells out, hundreds out of work

Reporter - Jason Hibbs

Story Created: May 18, 2012 at 8:22 PM CDT

Story Updated: May 18, 2012 at 10:48 PM CDT

FULTON, Ky. — Terminated: a large employer lets almost everyone go and the community can't believe how they did it. Employees returned to the job after lunch only to learn they no longer have a job.
It happened just after noon Friday at the 53-year-old Ferry Morse Seed Factory in Fulton, Kentucky.

A company spokesperson had no comment but people in the community had plenty to say about the way the company let workers go.
Jiffy Products owned and operated the factory. But now, Massachusetts-based Plantation Products owns the home and garden division of Jiffy, and in turn, owns Ferry Morse.

While they won't tell us their plans for the Fulton factory, they made it clear they don't want nearly all the workers who depend on the garden-growing company to feed their families.

The company that started sending seeds in the mail seven generations ago hand-delivered a letter to nearly 200 factory workers just after lunch. It stated their position was terminated, effective immediately.
"I can't believe that, because things were going so great," said Fulton resident Judy Green. "People had been there a long time."

Economic Development Director Eddy Crittendon said he was caught off guard like everyone else and is surprised the company gave no notice.
"There's folks who've been employed out there for thirty to forty years, have given their whole life to the company," he said.

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