Food supply chain company Cargill is laying off thousands of workers.

The Minnesota-based company with more than 160,000 employees worldwide told USA TODAY Tuesday it plans to cut around 5% of its staff globally. That would mean approximately 8,000 employees could be impacted, based on the publicly available employee count.

Forbes ranks Cargill as the top privately held company in the U.S., bringing in $160 billion in annual revenue.

"To strengthen Cargill’s impact, we must realign our talent and resources to align with our strategy," the company said in a statement shared with USA TODAY. "This difficult decision was not made lightly. We will lean on our core value of putting people first as we support our colleagues during this transition."

Global food prices dropping after March 2022 spike

The company's restructuring takes place as the food supply chain industry faces pressure as prices of some crops drop, according to Reuters. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization Food Price Index shows the average international price of foods was down 20.5% in October 2024 compared to its peak in March 2022.

Approximately 475 employees will be eliminated from the Cargill office center in Wayzata, Minnesota, according to a notice Cargill sent to the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development and obtained by USA TODAY. The company planned to start notifying those employees the week of Dec. 2, and the first separation dates will start Feb. 5, 2025 according to the notice.

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