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Kraft reverses Cadbury factory vow
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Food giant Kraft has signalled the loss of up to 400 jobs by announcing the closure of a Cadbury factory - despite earlier promises to keep it open.
The US firm said it was "unrealistic" to reverse Cadbury's plans to shut the site at Somerdale near Bristol and announced that the factory would shut by 2011.
Kraft, whose five-month battle for control of the confectioner was sealed earlier this month, had pledged to retain the plant.
But it said Cadbury had already spent £100 million on building new facilities in Poland and most production would be transferred by the middle of this year.
Kraft said last week it would keep the Somerdale factory open but today chairman and chief executive Irene Rosenfeld said: "In our recent talks with Cadbury senior management, it became clear that it is unrealistic to reverse the closure programme, despite our original intent to do so.
"While this is a difficult decision, we have moved quickly to end any further uncertainty."
Union Unite reacted with anger to the decision and said it sent the "worst possible message" to 6,000 other Cadbury workers in the UK and Ireland.
Jennie Formby, Unite national officer for the food and drinks sector, said the US firm had "deliberately misled many hundreds of decent men and women" at the site by promising to keep the factory open despite union concerns that this looked impossible.
She added Kraft's "thirst for public approval during the most unpopular takeover we've seen in recent times" led the company to ignore those warnings.
Business Secretary Lord Mandelson met Ms Rosenfeld after the takeover was sealed but failed to win a specific commitment on jobs.
Reader views (13)
>>>just to line the pockets of GREEDY SHAREHOLDERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Do you have a bank account? Any investments? Have a mortgage? If so, you are a greedy shareholder because your bank turns around and invests your money in shares. Without greedy shareholders like yourself, your entire country would collapse.
- Anon, usa, 04/03/2010 15:30
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Serves them right, they don't have unions in Poland. Those same union workers who got fired vote for increasing socialism that crushes small+large companies who are only trying to remain profitable. I hope they ship off millions of more jobs here in the US until they vote our socialist democrats out of the office.
Meanwhile, good luck convincing other companies to open their businesses in welfare states...
- American, usa, 04/03/2010 15:18
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Everyone knows that its going to happen, that hundreds of jobs are going to be axed by the toe cutting exercise so the new company get cut costs, its a standard business procedure, Cadbury would have known that it would have happened its no secret in the business world.
More unemployment in the UK just what the doctor ordered its great living in a corporate world....not.
I just hope the name Cadbury sticks around for a bit longer.
- J. Gomez, Townsville Australia, 10/02/2010 01:19
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I dont understand, why dont they just make everything in Poland, turn our factories into housing estates, ie, "Bournvill New Town" as lets face it we are more short of houses than we are of milk trays, and after all Kraft are in business to make money, chocolate is just the product they use to achieve it, and I bet in Poland they dont have the crippling business rates which are sounding the death knell to British businesses.
- Ann Other View, Krafty Way, Bournvill twinned with Krackow, 10/02/2010 00:45
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"Business Secretary Lord Mandelson met Ms Rosenfeld after the takeover was sealed but failed to win a specific commitment on jobs"
what sort of a div thinks that you negotiate AFTER the deal has been done?
- Barry, woking, uk, 09/02/2010 21:51
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Beginning of the end for Cadbury UK. Kraft are only intersted in making money, and if that means cheap labour in Poland, they'll go for it. What Kraft isn't telling Cadbury workers is that they have a hidden agenda to gradually close down the UK operation and not care a jot for the British worker: Don't let them tell you any different! So much for selling out to the yanks! Worse news to come I fear.
- Joannie, Newham, London, 09/02/2010 21:31
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This is a typical outcome of British industry. Why must we allow these takeovers. We are fast becoming a nation of shopkeepers and warehouses. Can you remember when Britain made ships, cars and planes!-well we did.
- Malcolm May, Sandhurst, UK, 09/02/2010 21:25
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vote with your feet and dont buy the product simple rearly
- Steven O Mahoney Woodford Green, essex, 09/02/2010 21:05
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Just shows what liars they are. Difficult to boycott a company the size of Kraft but I will try. Disgusting behaviour so soon after giving undertakings to the staff. Shame on them.
- Russ, Brighton, 09/02/2010 19:39
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It belongs to kraft now they can do what the like, and believe me they will. They can move the entire cadbury set up to poland as far as I am concerned, perhaps that would attract some of the polish workers to return to work for the americans, there by leaving jobs here for us.
- Ken Winter, bishop auckland England, 09/02/2010 19:35
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It is disgusting how we have let this happen to loose such a great part of our history.
They should be made to keep their promises all these people out of work and just to line the pockets of GREEDY SHAREHOLDERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- Jacquie Bartley, Berkshire England, 09/02/2010 19:29
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Govement over the last 60 year have invalided our country, that is now has to rely on supplies for almost everything from washers, screws, steel, copper cables, coal, televisions washing machines fridges the whole electrical industry, telephones and now chocolate
In Great Britain we cannot make a battle tank without imported materials (and the British army has to use German Lorries???
- David Skeggs, Paris. France, 09/02/2010 19:18
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Splendid. An American squeezable cheese merchant buys one of our oldest family firms and ships it off to Poland, and the Govt does and says nothing. I for one intend to boycott Cadburys from now on. Stuff Kraft and stuff the Poles.
- Squiz, Islington, 09/02/2010 19:13
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