The Coca‑Cola bottling plant in Ventura will permanently close on July 10, ending 114 years of continuous operation in the city. The closure was disclosed in a recent California WARN notice filed by Reyes Coca‑Cola Bottling, the company that operates the facility.
According to multiple business and regional news outlets, the shutdown will affect 85 employees, with most workers—approximately 78—expected to be reassigned to other Southern California facilities. Employees who are not reassigned will be eligible to apply for open positions within the company.
The Ventura plant is one of the oldest Coca‑Cola bottling operations in California. Historical reporting indicates that the first Ventura Coca‑Cola facility opened in 1912, later relocating to a larger site in 1937 as production expanded. By the 1950s, Ventura had become a significant hub for soft‑drink manufacturing on the Central Coast.
Reyes Coca‑Cola Bottling has not publicly detailed the specific reasons for the closure, but several outlets describe the move as part of a broader statewide consolidation strategy. Recent company actions include closures of bottling facilities in American Canyon, Salinas, and Modesto, alongside the development of a new production campus in Rancho Cucamonga.
The Ventura facility, located on Walker Street, has served as a long‑standing industrial presence in the region. Local officials have not yet issued public comments regarding the closure or the future use of the site.
Attribution: Information sourced from publicly available reporting by SFGATE, KTLA, Yahoo Finance (Los Angeles Times syndication), KMPH Fox 26, AOL News, and California Observer.