24th Jun 2005 15:45
C&C Group Plc24 June 2005 24 June, 2005 C&C GROUP PLC ANNOUNCES RE-ORGANISATION OF SNACKS DIVISION Dublin, London, 24 June, 2005: C&C Group plc ('C&C'), the leading manufacturer,marketer and distributor of branded beverages and snacks in Ireland, todayannounced a re-organisation of its snacks division ('Tayto') The snacks market in Ireland is a changing and highly competitive one whichcurrently displays little overall growth. To maintain competitiveness and itsmarket leadership position, Tayto is implementing a programme to reduceoperating costs and enhance efficiencies. The programme includes the outsourcing of crisps manufacturing to Largo Foodsand the closure of the Tayto crisps factory in Coolock, Dublin; the integrationof snacks logistics with that of beverages; and the re-structuring of the snackssales organisation. The decision to cease production at the Dublin crisps facility follows anassessment of the level of investment required to sustain its competitivenessand the available snacks manufacturing capacity on the island of Ireland. Thisre-organisation will result in the closure of the company's Coolock plant inOctober with a loss of 98 jobs. The remaining 166 jobs in Tayto are deployedacross several functions including new product development, sales, marketing andquality control. The re-organisation programme will give rise to an exceptional charge ofapproximately €10 million in C&C's 2005/6 fiscal year. These exceptional costswill be funded through the disposal of surplus manufacturing and distributionproperties. The programme will result in enhanced operating margins in the snackdivision commencing in 2006/7. In July 2003, Tayto successfully outsourced production from its Terenure snacksplant to Largo Foods. The outsourcing of the remaining manufacturingenablesTayto to increase its focus on developing and marketing products to caterfor the increasingly competitive and health conscious consumer snacks markets. Tayto products will continue to be made in accordance with their own uniquerecipes and use Irish potatoes sourced from Irish farmers. The specificationand monitoring of the entire manufacturing process will remain under the directcontrol and supervision of Tayto's own Quality Control Team. Maurice Pratt, C&C Group CEO, commented "C&C is committed to pursuing efficiencyimprovements in each of its operating divisions. The difficult decision to closethe crisps facility follows a review of the required level of capital investmentat the facility, the availability of alternative manufacturing suppliers and anincreasingly competitive environment." He concluded "We would like to record our appreciation for the commitment andloyalty of the affected workforce over many years." ENDS Investors and analysts Irish Media International Media Mark Kenny or Jonathan Neilan C&C Group queries: Edward OrlebarK Capital Source Paddy Hughes Drury Communications Finsbury Group Tel: +353-1- 631 5500 Tel: +353 1 260 5000 Tel: +44 20 7251 3801Email :c&[email protected] Email: [email protected] Email:[email protected] Tayto Ireland queries: Conor Dempsey Slattery Communications Tel : +353-1-661 4055 Email : [email protected] This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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