Nestlé’s Breakfast-cereal Jv Names Ecco Group As Potential Buyer Of Two Plants

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Cereal Partners Worldwide, nan breakfast-cereal task betwixt Nestlé and General Mills, is readying to waste a brace of plants successful France and nan UK.

The sites successful mobility – Itancourt successful bluish France and Bromborough, north-west England – were some part of reviews announced successful December and March, respectively, owed to challenges and income declines successful nan cereals category.

In a connection provided to Just Food coming (13 August), Cereal Partners Worldwide (CPW) said Ecco Group is “considering nan acquisition” of nan 2 facilities, pinch labor astatine nan plants advised accordingly.

The objective, CPW said, is “creating a European subordinate successful nan proviso of private-label meal cereals”.

Headquartered successful Munich, Germany, Ecco Group “specialises successful firm carve-outs”, according to its website, which adds that nan business provides “customised solutions that support companies successful successful carve-outs and transformations – from acquisition to operational optimisation”.

Itancourt will beryllium nan taxable of a partnership, CPW said.

“A co-manufacturing statement would beryllium established betwixt nan purchaser and CPF [Cereal Partners France] to unafraid a transitional activity and nan ramp-up of operations astatine nan Itancourt tract complete a three-year period,” nan connection read.

Meanwhile astatine Bromborough, “the connection is to get nan private-label cereal manufacturing capabilities”, CPW added.

Just Food has asked Ecco Group to corroborate nan talks pinch CPW and nan quality of its early plans should nan transaction spell ahead.

With respect to nan Itancourt site, CPF said successful December that nan reappraisal would look to spot really nan business could “better reside competitiveness challenges” successful nan cereals marketplace successful France and Europe.

CPF added location had been a “structural decline” successful nan class since nan extremity of nan 2010s. Consumers person “abandoned” what nan institution called nan “wellness” conception for muesli and granola.

Around 85% of nan factory’s accumulation is shipped extracurricular France, principally to Europe and countries including nan UK, Portugal, Spain, Germany, Italy and Greece. The tract makes products nether brands including Fitness, Chokella and Crunch.

The Itancourt installation employs astir 250 people. When nan plans for Bromborough were revealed successful March, CPW said 314 jobs could beryllium astatine risk. The UK tract produces branded cereals specified arsenic Cheerios and supermarket own-label products.

Today’s connection from CPW added: “Cereal Partners has been committed to protecting jobs successful its hunt for a purchaser for nan sites.

“Our privilege remains our employees, and our attraction will beryllium connected moving pinch them, their representatives and ECCO Group connected nan adjacent stages of this process, including accusation and consultation processes pinch worker representatives.”