Crown confirms UK site closure
Crown Food Europe is to close one of its sites in the UK in July with more than 100 people affected due to supply exceeding demand.
The firm confirmed the decision this week following a 90-day consultation process which began in January.
The Worcester site, which is one of four the firm run in the UK, produces two piece and three piece cans and ends for the food market.
Supply and demand
Crown said that supply across the four sites exceeded demand and restructuring needed to be looked at with 116 people employed at the site.
“We can confirm redundancy notices were served on Monday 15 April with an expected end production date of the 7 July,” a Crown spokesman told FoodProductionDaily.com.
“We would like to recognise the professional attitude of all the employees and union representatives throughout the consultation process.”
The site was formally owned by Metal Box which Crown Holdings, or Crown Cork and Seal as it was then known, acquired in 1996.
The spokesman added that the closure of the Perry Wood site is a key step in restoring a competitive future for the UK and Ireland business.
“We are also investing in our remaining sites to ensure we are fully capable of meeting the demands of our important customers. However, due to the dynamic marketplace in which we operate, we will continually need to monitor our supply/demand balance in the future.”
Initial review
In a statement announcing the initial review process in January, the firm said it was part of a wider review of the UK and Ireland manufacturing and business support facilities.
“Changes within the food packaging sector have caused a consistent decline in sales and our manufacturing capacity across our four UK and Ireland Food sites now unfortunately exceeds demand.
“To protect the future of the wider business and its employees, we therefore need to consider proposals for restructuring.”
Crown also operates aluminium and metal UK food packaging sites in Braunstone, Neath and Wisbech, which form part of the Crown Holdings portfolio which includes 134 manufacturing facilities in 41 countries with 2011 net sales of $8.6bn.
