BRAWLEY – Javier Nunez, a third-generation Spreckels employee, is grappling with the impending closure of the plant where his family has worked for decades, calling the loss a blow to the community.

“It just saddens me to the point that it’s coming to an end, especially since it’s been there since the late 40s and early 50s. So it’s just sad seeing that as another landmark, as everybody knows, as a cornerstone,” Nunez said in an interview with Imperial Valley Press. “It’s also another sad thing that’s devastated the whole valley; not just locals from town, but the whole valley is in shock about it.”

On April 22, 2025, the Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative (SMBSC), the owner of Spreckels Sugar, formally announced plans to decommission and close its Brawley, California, refinery, t

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