Pearson’s Candy Company Factory Closing in St. Paul

Every Minnesotan knows Salted Nut Rolls! They're such a delicious guilty pleasure. They're made by Pearson's Candy Company, who started in Minneapolis in 1909.

But now, their factory that's in St. Paul is going to be shutting down in September, and it's a bit unclear what's going to happen to some of our favorite candies.

ALSO READ: New Exhibits and Things to Do at the 2026 MN State Fair

Pearson's Candy Company Factory Closure

Pearson's started 117 years ago, but the St. Paul factory that they still use today opened in 1959.

Not only are they the company behind Salted Nut Rolls but also Nut Goodies and Mint Patties.

Over the years, Pearson's has been owned by a few different parent companies, but right now they're owned by Promise Confections out of Pennsylvania. They're the ones who decided to make the move to close the Pearson's factory saying, "'This decision was made after careful consideration and reflects the current business and economic environment.'"

The factory will be ceasing operation on September 28th, 2026, laying off 80 people.

What's Going to Happen to Salted Nut Rolls and Nut Goodies?

So if the Pearson's factory is closing, what's going to happen to the Salted Nut Rolls and Nut Goodies? Are they going away too?

It sounds like Promise Confections is working on that, but they haven't provided much detail from what I'm seeing. They sent this statement to KARE 11:

At this time, we’re looking to move certain key brands of Pearson's to a strategic partner and we’ll continue to explore all options in order to make these legacy products.

It makes me wonder if there will be a little hiccup in production of those products because that sounds to me like they don't have that worked out just yet. They plan to figure something out, but it's not ironed out completely. Although, by the time the end of September comes around maybe that'll have been enough time for a 'strategic partner' to be found.