Bournville announcement is sweet deal for Cadbury

BOURNVILLE is to become the Kraft Foods’ global centre of chocolate research and development under new plans announced today.

Kraft, which took over Cadbury in an £11.5bn deal in February, said it would be shutting its operation in Cheltenham  and shifting focus to the home of UK chocolate making – “building on Cadbury’s tradition of quality and innovation there”.  

The company plans to bring together Cadbury and Kraft Foods talent to create a global Centre of Excellence for chocolate Research and Development.  The centre will drive new product development, new technologies and best practices for not just Cadbury but other brands in the Kraft stable including Milka, Toblerone, Côte d’Or, Terry’s, Green & Black’s, Suchard, Freia, Marabou and Lacta.

The US-company said that in a further commitment to R&D in the UK, the Cadbury’s Science Centre in Reading would become a global science and technology centre serving the combined company worldwide.  

The global centres in Bournville and Reading are in addition to Kraft Foods’ existing coffee R&D centre, which has been based in Banbury for more than 40 years and the global coffee Centre of Excellence since 1995.

This centre has been responsible for driving innovation for the company’s multi-billion dollar global coffee business, which includes brands like Kenco, Tassimo, Carte Noire and Maxwell House.  

In addition to R&D, Kraft has also announced proposals to integrate its office network in the UK in order to “strengthen collaboration and support a high performance culture amongst its combined UK management team and staff”.

The move, likely to be completed next year, will see confectionary administration based in Bournville and at the former Cadbury offices in Uxbridge.

Staff from Cheltenham will be offered relocation, as will those working in customer service teams in Sheffield and Banbury.

Nick Bunker, president of Kraft Foods UK & Ireland said: “The UK is one of the company’s most important markets.  Kraft Foods has been here for more than 85 years and Cadbury, of course, was founded here.

“I’m delighted by the company’s vote of confidence in the UK.  The skills and facilities we have here will enable us to build the UK’s favourite snacks and confectionery company and to drive global innovation for two of Kraft Foods’ largest categories worldwide, namely chocolate and coffee.”

He said that while closing Cheltenham had been a difficult decision, the business rationale was compelling.

“Having our R&D, customer service and support functions working side-by-side will enable us to share more insights, act more quickly and execute more flawlessly, thereby accelerating our growth,” he said.  

Business leaders in Birmingham have welcomed the move.

Jerry Blackett, chief executive of Birmingham Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCI) said: “The plans are excellent news for Birmingham and an endorsement of the Chamber’s support for rolling out a welcome for Kraft.

“It is an important and iconic brand for Birmingham and we are delighted that this association will be retained.”

“This is also good news on the jobs front with the announcement that Kraft’s combined office network team will be co-located in Bournville and Uxbridge, the site of the previous Cadbury head office.”