Ferrara Candy Company, the Chicago company behind Brach’s, Nerds and SweeTarts, is closing its candy plant in the city’s Little Village neighborhood and laying off all 154 workers there. The state’s layoff record puts the job losses on April 5, 2027.
The shutdown ends production at a West Side factory in a company that has made candy in Chicago for close to 120 years. It is the second Chicago-area plant Ferrara has closed since 2024, and the company says the work is moving to its other factories.
What Ferrara reported to Illinois on November 9
The Illinois workNet layoff record for Ferrara Candy Company lists the site at 2945 W. 31st St. in Chicago, ZIP code 60623. It classifies the action as a plant closure, not a partial layoff, and counts 154 affected workers. The record shows the report came from the company itself, was logged on November 9, 2026, and gives April 5, 2027, as the layoff date.
Ferrara told workers and the state about the decision last week and pointed to market conditions and its long-term innovation plans, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. The company said production will shift to other facilities, that employees can keep working at the plant until it closes, and that they can apply for open jobs across Ferrara and its affiliated companies. It also said it will provide severance benefits and outplacement services. In its statement, Ferrara said it is grateful to the Little Village community for years of partnership.
What a closing notice leaves out: The Little Village filing sets April 5 as the end for 154 jobs, but it says nothing about the car loans, card balances and medical bills that keep their own due dates after a final paycheck. The debt-validation steps in The Bank Account & Debt Protection Kit show how a collector can be required to prove a debt before anything is paid.
The brands behind the Little Village plant’s owner
Ferrara’s own brand list includes Brach’s, Nerds, Laffy Taffy and Jelly Belly. The company has not said publicly which of its candies come out of the Little Village plant or which factories will take over that work.
The business started as a bakery in Chicago’s Little Italy in 1908. Ferrero bought it in 2017, and it remains privately held under common ownership with Ferrero. Besides Little Village, Ferrara runs plants in Bellwood, Forest Park and Itasca in the Chicago suburbs and in DeKalb, according to the Sun-Times.
The closing follows another cut close to home. In 2024, Ferrara shut the Jelly Belly factory in North Chicago and laid off 66 employees, less than a year after buying the family-owned jelly bean maker.
How the Illinois WARN Act covers a closing like this one
Illinois has its own version of the federal plant-closing law. The state’s WARN Act page says it covers employers with 75 or more full-time workers and requires 60 days’ advance notice of a plant closing or mass layoff to affected workers and to state and local officials.
An employer that skips the required notice can owe each affected worker back pay and benefits for the violation period, up to 60 days, and can face a civil penalty of up to $500 for each day of the violation. The Illinois Department of Labor runs a WARN information line at (217) 782-1710.
Ferrara’s timeline goes well past the minimum. From the November 9 report date to the April 5 layoff date is 147 days, about five months of notice for the people inside the plant.
Where Ferrara’s laid-off workers can file for unemployment
Unemployment claims in Illinois go through the Illinois Department of Employment Security. Its claimant handbook tells workers to file during the first week after they become unemployed, either online or at an IDES office, and to register with the state’s job service at IllinoisJobLink.com.
Timing is the trap here. The handbook ties the claim to the first week out of work, not to the day a closing is announced. For Little Village workers, the date that matters is the separation date on each person’s own notice; the state record lists April 5 for the closing.
Severance can also affect the math. Workers who are offered severance should read the terms closely and ask IDES how any payment is treated before assuming benefits will start right away.
What Ferrara has not said about the Chicago shutdown
The company has not said how many of the 154 workers it expects to place in other Ferrara jobs, how much severance it is offering, or what will happen to the 31st Street building after production stops.
Ferrara also has not tied the closing to any one product line or cost. Its explanation so far rests on market conditions and its long-range product plans. For the workers, the firm numbers are the ones in the state record: 154 jobs and a last day in early April.
Little Village households after the plant closes
For 154 Ferrara workers, early April is when regular wages stop, while rent, car loans and card bills keep arriving on their own schedule. An account that falls far enough behind can be sold to a collection agency, and the collector’s first letter opens a short window to demand proof of what is owed.
The Bank Account & Debt Protection Kit pairs the debt-validation steps with a protected-funds and dispute log for tracking each collector, each letter and each reply.
Read the debt-validation steps in The Bank Account & Debt Protection Kit.
This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed for accuracy against Illinois layoff records, Illinois labor and employment agency guidance and news reports.
Grant Mercer covers market dynamics, business trends, and the economic forces driving growth across industries. His analysis connects macro movements with real-world implications for investors, entrepreneurs, and professionals. Through his work at The Daily Overview, Grant helps readers understand how markets function and where opportunities may emerge.
