MADISON, Wis. (WFRV) – A regional wholesale food distributor founded in Wisconsin is permanently closing and laying off 50 employees after failing to reach a deal with its primary lender.
According to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) letter sent to the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, Midwest Perishable Industries Inc. will close its facility on Helgesen Drive in Madison.
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The company had been negotiating with its main lender in March to secure a new line of credit to cover operating expenses. That funding would have helped Midwest Perishable secure additional capital or find a new lender.
However, the lender reportedly declined to extend credit under acceptable terms last week, abruptly ending talks, cutting the credit line, and initiating steps to collect on the debt.
“These actions were unexpected and only came about in the last week,” the company stated in the WARN letter. “[Midwest Perishable] believed that had it given notice prior to this point it would have precluded the company from obtaining the need for capital.”
A last-ditch attempt to sell the business also fell through, forcing the company to shut down immediately.
