Diamond Foods to Expand UK Kettle Foods Plant
US-based snacks group Diamond Foods is investing $10m to expand of its UK production facility in Norwich to meet increasing demand for Kettle Chips. The Kettle brand has experienced significant growth driven by the introduction of its new Kettle Ridge Crisp line, the expansion of its Kettle Chip sharing, single serve and multi-pack lines and an increased penetration in both the impulse channel and international markets.
“We are continuing to drive strong growth in a tough marketplace and see a lot of opportunity to sustain this trend,” says Jeremy Bradley, managing director of Kettle Foods Europe. “It’s a credit to the work of the Norwich team that Diamond is making this investment, which supports our plans for growth and will create a number of new jobs for the region.”
The expansion is anticipated to get underway in the spring and includes new packaging lines, an increase in multi-packing capability and enhancements to employee facilities.
Diamond Foods acquired the Kettle Foods businesses in both the US and the UK from private equity group Lion Capital for $615m in cash last year. In addition to Kettle Chips, Diamond Foods’ other brands include Emerald snack nuts, Pop Secret popcorn, and Diamond of California culinary and snack nuts.
