Record-high beef prices are now being cited as a major factor behind the financial crisis forcing one of the nation’s largest Wendy’s franchise operators into bankruptcy—and the impact reaches deep into northern Indiana.
Meritage Hospitality Group, the Grand Rapids, Michigan-based restaurant company that operates 314 Wendy’s restaurants across 15 states, filed voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Sept. 17 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Michigan.
Among those restaurants are 13 Wendy’s locations across Indiana, including restaurants in Valparaiso, Portage, Chesterton, Michigan City and Goshen. Meritage acquired 12 Wendy’s restaurants across northern Indiana in 2018 as part of its aggressive expansion strategy…