CLEARFIELD — Cereal-giant Kellogg Company is closing its frozen food plant in the Freeport Center.

The Clearfield plant, which employs about 200 people, first opened in 1998 and makes a variety of frozen vegetarian foods, such as Gardenburger.

The Battle Creek, Mich.-based company plans to close the 100,000 square-foot facility by the end of November 2015. The Clearfield plant is the company’s only Utah location.

“It’s disappointing that we would lose a company with the name recognition that Kellogg has,” said JJ Allen, Clearfield assistant city manager. “They’re a good company that has been good to Clearfield . It will be sad to see it go.”

Freeport Center Property Manager Betty Parker said Kellogg informed her company of the closure Monday morning.

Freeport Center has about 7 million square feet of manufacturing and warehouse space employing about 8,000 people.

Parker is confident the center’s management will be able to fill the loss by the end of 2015.

“We do have sometime to try to fill that,” Parker said. “We have some activity with current tenants and some that have contacted the Freeport Center. I’m hoping we will be able to fill it in the next year.”

In the meantime, Parker said the Freeport Center will work to integrate the employees into other businesses.”

Allen said manufacturing is a vital component of the community.

Combined with the state’s low unemployment, he thinks the employees will be able to find new positions.

“There seems to be plenty of operations,” Allen said. “Kellogg was not the only manufacturer in town. For workers who have that skill set, they should be able to work in Clearfield or not far away.”

Kellogg officials said they will offer the employees severance and outplacement support.

The closure is a part of its global manufacturing network as part of Project K, Kellogg officials said in a news release. The company’s global, four-year efficiency and effectiveness program to help unlock cost savings to invest in its strategy and grow its business.

Aside from closing the frozen foods plant in Clearfield, the company plans to expand of a cereal plant in Belleville, Ontario in Canada. 

The Belleville expansion will help the company meet an increased demand in shaped cereal products such as Special K Protein and Froot Loops.

“This is a part of the economic cycle of companies growing or contracting and trying to be more efficient,” Allen said. “We don’t see for any cause for great concern.”