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The Scottish Executive has awarded £3.6m of processing and marketing grants to 27 food production companies, which is expected to lead to the creation of 200 jobs in rural Scotland. 31-Dec-2001 Robert Cain, the brewer of Cains traditional ale that also owns 10 pubs, has been put up for sale by Danish parent company Bryggerigruppen. 31-Dec-2001 United Biscuits, the snack foods manufacturer, is planning to return to the stock market within 14 months. 24-Dec-2001 Castle Eden has won approval from Easington council to sell its brewery site near Peterlee to housing developers and relocate the business to the former Lion Brewery in Hartlepool. 20-Dec-2001 Express Dairies is to close its Linthorpe dairy in Middlesbrough in March, with the loss of 118 jobs. 17-Dec-2001 The Scottish Agricultural Science Agency is planning to relocate its 150 staff from Corstorphine to a new £12m complex of laboratories, glass houses and offices at Gogarbank Farm near Edinburgh. 11-Dec-2001 Mission Foods has announced plans to create a further 60 jobs at its tortilla chips factory in Coventry, following an investment in new capacity. 06-Dec-2001 Scottish & Newcastle is to relocate its Newcastle-based administration centre and about 50 staff into new premises at the Citygate complex by autumn 2002. 06-Dec-2001 Harleston Foods has shed 70 jobs at its poultry processing factory in Norfolk. 06-Dec-2001 Northern Foods is in negotiations to sell its Pork Farm Bowyers sausage business to Kerry Group of Ireland, and the two companies also plan to merge their van sales operations. 05-Dec-2001 Yates Group is to withdraw from its last remaining wholesaling operation by selling the Aussie White business to H&A Wines & Spirits Group, in order to reduce costs and focus on its retail estate. 29-Nov-2001 Richmond Foods is relocating 30 staff from an administration centre in York to Leeds, where a further 30 staff will be hired. 29-Nov-2001 Greencore is to shed more than 100 jobs at its Meridian Foods factory in Denbighshire, in order to transfer production of sauces and dressings to its site in Selby. 28-Nov-2001 Toms is to shed 90 of the 170 jobs at the Taveners sweets factory in Liverpool, in order to transfer some of the production to sites in Blackpool and Poole. 27-Nov-2001 Robert Wiseman Dairies is seeking planning permission for a £6m depot at the Cabot Park industrial site near Avonmouth, which would involve the relocation of 60 jobs from Longwell Green and the creation of 60 new jobs. 22-Nov-2001 Scottish & Newcastle is to set up a £3.5m customer call centre for its Scottish Courage brewing business in Livingston by 2003, with the creation of 250 jobs. 21-Nov-2001 Perkins Frozen Foods is considering plans to close a factory in Penrith with the loss of 90 jobs, in order to relocate its burger and ribs business. 20-Nov-2001 Tulip International is to set up a £15m cooked bacon plant at the former Thermos site in Thetford, with the creation of 50 jobs. 19-Nov-2001 Hedon Salads and Glinwell have formed a joint venture to acquire the 35-acre Drax Nursery site from English Village Salads, and will form a new company called Selby Salads to produce peppers and aubergines. 19-Nov-2001 British Bakeries is said to be planning a 90,000 sq ft distribution centre at the Eurocentral industrial development in Lanarkshire. 19-Nov-2001 Diageo has announced plans for a £13m expansion at its alcopops bottling plant in Leven, Fife, with the creation of up to 70 jobs. 16-Nov-2001 Headland Foods is planning to build a £15m pasta factory in Grimsby, which would involve the relocation of about 350 jobs from its existing site and the creation of 100 new jobs. 15-Nov-2001 Compass has won a £150m 10-year contract to run catering facilities for the BBC, which will cover 20 sites in London and Scotland. 13-Nov-2001 Nestle is planning to invest £4m at its York factory to increase production of the KitKat chocolate snack. 07-Nov-2001 Jennings Brothers is planning to shed 50 jobs in its Cumbria-based brewing business and sell half its 44 managed pubs. 07-Nov-2001 Express Dairies is to close a dairy in Durham with the loss of 109 jobs, while its Durham-based liquid milk business has been sold to Associated Co-operative Creameries for £5m. 06-Nov-2001 Mars is to merge its food and pet care operations in the UK under a single trading identity called Masterfoods. 06-Nov-2001 Tamarind Touch, the Mansfield-based supplier of ethnic ready meals, has been wound up with the loss of 15 jobs. 01-Nov-2001 Branston Potatoes is looking to recruit 20 more workers at its potato packing plant in Lincolnshire, following a rise in demand from Tesco. 01-Nov-2001 Allied Domecq is to set up a new division for its wine assets in January, and the business may be spun off as a separate company later. 31-Oct-2001 Cavaghan & Gray is to create 10 new jobs at its chilled ready meals plant in Carlisle, having won back a £2m contract to supply Virgin Atlantic. 25-Oct-2001 Arla Foods and New Zealand Milk are to form a Leeds-based joint venture called Arla Foods Fonterra to market the Anchor and Lurpak butter brands in the UK, which is expected to involve the closure of the NZM base in Swindon. 22-Oct-2001 Taste of the West has announced a £3m Objective One-funded project to help more than 400 food and drink companies market Cornish products over the next three years. 17-Oct-2001 Grampian Country Foods is to shed 130 jobs at its meat processing business in Newbridge, Lothian. 16-Oct-2001 Culligan International is setting up a new water bottling plant at the Io Centre in Swindon, which will provide jobs for 40 people by the end of the year. 12-Oct-2001 McIntosh of Dyce is planning to create 100 new jobs and launch a new range of branded food products. 11-Oct-2001 Genesis Breads of the World is planning to invest £1m in the expansion of its bakery in Londonderry, with the creation of up to 50 jobs. 10-Oct-2001 Hazlewood Foods is recruiting 300 staff to work at its new £13m chilled pizza factory at the Deeside industrial park, but 379 jobs will be lost through the closure of its Bedford plant. 05-Oct-2001 NEC Group is considering plans for a management buy-out of its catering operation, which includes more than 200 staff and provides catering at the NEC, NEC Arena and National Indoor Arena. 05-Oct-2001 McGeary Mushroom is to double the size of its fresh mushroom operation in Northern Ireland, with the creation of 15 jobs in Moy. 01-Oct-2001 Beacon Foods is planning to create 20 more jobs over the next 12 months as it continues to expand its food ingredient production facility in Brecon. 01-Oct-2001 Humber Quality Foods is to relocate its North Lincolnshire-based vegetable processing business to larger premises at Newton-on-Trent early next year, with the creation of about 20 jobs. 28-Sep-2001 Northern Foods has sold the Lift lemon tea brand to Hicks Muse Tate & Furst of the US for £8.2m. 27-Sep-2001 McCain is planning to build a £70m frozen chips factory at Rugeley in Staffordshire by 2004, with the creation of 150 jobs. 25-Sep-2001 Macleod McCombe, the fresh produce supplier with about 200 staff, has gone into liquidation. 24-Sep-2001 Golden Vale is to invest £1.5m at its Golden Cow cheese snacks plant in Portadown, with the creation of 15 jobs over the next three years. 20-Sep-2001 Grampian Country Foods is to close its North Country Poultry factory in Garstang in December with the loss of 240 jobs. 19-Sep-2001 Interbrew will have to sell the Carling, Caffrey's and Worthington beer brands in order to ease government fears over the competition effects of its acquisition of Bass Brewers. 19-Sep-2001 Dairy Crest is to close a dairy in Basildon and a distribution centre in Dereham with the loss of about 230 jobs, in order to focus production on sites in Enfield and Yeovil. 17-Sep-2001 Uniq has started a review of its underperforming yoghurt operations, which could lead to the business being put up for sale. 17-Sep-2001 United Biscuits is to close its McVities biscuit factory in Hatton, near Peterhead, with the loss of up to 123 jobs, in order to transfer production to Halifax. 14-Sep-2001 Snackhouse is conducting a strategic review of its crisps and snacks business, which could involve raising more capital or selling parts or all of the company. 13-Sep-2001 British Sugar has put its technical research centre on the Norwich Research Park up for sale for more than £2.6m, following a strategic review of its sugar beet factories. 06-Sep-2001 Campbell Soup is planning to relocate 80 staff from King's Lynn and 30 from Crawley to a new commercial head office in Cambridge and a research centre in Worksop. 05-Sep-2001 Carr's Milling is forming a joint venture with Billington Agriculture to sell a new range of animal feeds and farm supplies through 16 branches in the North of England and Scotland. 05-Sep-2001 Pataks is to close its ethnic foods factory in Brechin, and the 47 staff are being offered a move to its other sites in Dundee and Cumbernauld. 05-Sep-2001 Adams Pork Products is seeking planning permission from North Kesteven District Council for a £10m extension to its meat products factory in Ruskington. 04-Sep-2001 Diageo has sold the Croft and Delaforce fortified wine brands to Gonzalez Byass and Taylor Fonseca for £52m, in order to focus on spirits. 04-Sep-2001 Youngs Bluecrest, the fish processor, is expected to be put up for sale by Legal & General Ventures for £150m. 04-Sep-2001 Country Rose Delicacies is to close its food factory on the Tir Llwyd Industrial Estate in Kinmel Bay with the loss of 73 jobs, following the loss of a major contract. 03-Sep-2001 Gibsons is creating an unspecified number of new jobs at its sandwich factory in Ellesmere Port. 31-Aug-2001 Cornish Country Larder is planning a £2.3m expansion at its soft cheese factory in Newquay. 29-Aug-2001 Hazlewood Foods is to shed about 120 of the 177 jobs at its pickles and sauces factory in Manchester. 28-Aug-2001 Wholebake Foods is planning to expand production of cereal bars at its factory in Corwen, Denbighshire, with the creation of 10 jobs. 23-Aug-2001 Boutinot is planning to raise £6m in a flotation on Aim in order to fund the expansion of its wine production and export business. 20-Aug-2001 Fyffes Multifresh and Capespan International are combining their general produce operations and UK processing sites into a new company called Capespan Limited. 20-Aug-2001 Richmond Foods is in discussions to acquire the UK ice cream business of Nestle, which could lead to the loss of up to 230 jobs at a Telford factory and a York office. 17-Aug-2001 Mission Foods is to expand its new tortilla chips factory in Coventry by opening a third production line in October, taking the total workforce to 200. 16-Aug-2001 Findus, the food manufacturer, has relocated its head office and 40 staff from Croydon to Redhill. 14-Aug-2001 Britannia Biscuits is planning to double the workforce at its Teesside biscuit factory to 150 over the next year. 14-Aug-2001 S Daniels, the soup manufacturer, is planning to sell a 30% stake to Singapore Food Industries, in order to raise £10m for the expansion of its plants. 13-Aug-2001 Milk Link, the dairy farmers co-operative, is planning to spend up to £150m on the acquisition of milk processing plants and the expansion of its distribution network. 13-Aug-2001 Alpha Airports has acquired a 51% stake in the Jordan Flight Catering Company from the government of Jordan for £8.8m. 03-Aug-2001 Gafoor Poultry Products has won permission to build a £1.1m poultry processing plant at the former BFL Coal Yard in Preston. 30-Jul-2001 Taypack Potatoes is planning to extend its potato packing premises in Moncur, Inchture, including a new office and improved dispatch and grading facilities. 25-Jul-2001 Malton Foods is creating an unspecified number of new jobs at its Unipork bacon plant in Cookstown. 25-Jul-2001 Northern Foods is creating up to 150 jobs at a new £2.5m food production facility in Trowbridge, which will enable its Bowyers division to produce nut-free meat products. 23-Jul-2001 Perkins Foods, the manufacturer of ready meals and pizzas, is planning to reduce its supply chain costs by shedding two thirds of suppliers and putting contracts out to tender. 23-Jul-2001 Homefoods is planning to invest £4m in a new production line for the DJ Spuddles microwaveable chip in Birkenhead. 18-Jul-2001 British Bakeries is reviewing its long-term operational plans in Scotland, prompting concern that the work at its Ayr bakery could be transferred to Glasgow with the loss of 300 jobs. 17-Jul-2001 Youngs Bluecrest is planning to recruit a further 100 workers at its Grimsby fish products factory over the next few months. 17-Jul-2001 Compass is discussing plans to transfer its Eurest In-Flight catering business to Swissair, in return for the airline's Restorama, Rail Gourmet and Gourmet Nova operations, which have a combined workforce of 4,600. 13-Jul-2001 Anglo Beef Processors is to shed 60 of the 80 jobs at its meat processing plant in Blisworth, Northamptonshire, in order to transfer the butchering operation to other sites. 12-Jul-2001 Kwoks is planning to expand its Oriental food factory in Grimsby later this year, and the workforce will rise from 45 to more than 60. 11-Jul-2001 Nardini, the Scottish ice cream company, is being put for up sale, including premises in Glasgow, East Kilbride and Largs. 10-Jul-2001 HP Bulmer is to shed up to 10% of its 2,300-strong workforce, as part of a £10m two-year restructuring programme aimed at improving the profitability of its cider business. 10-Jul-2001 Richmond Foods has announced plans to invest more than £4m at its ice cream factory in Leeming Bar, Yorkshire, with the creation of 80 jobs. 09-Jul-2001 Youngs Bluecrest has appointed Deutsche Bank to consider its future options, which could lead to the expansion of its fish products business or the sale of Legal & General Ventures' 79% stake. 09-Jul-2001 Princes Foods is to relocate its Chichester-based Shippam's meat spreads business to new premises on the Terminus Road industrial estate. 05-Jul-2001 Robert Wiseman Dairies is to close its Kilmarnock depot with the loss of about 25 jobs, although some staff will move to the distribution centre at Cambuslang. 03-Jul-2001 Sun Valley Foods is forming a joint venture with Sadia of Brazil called Concordia Foods, which will distribute poultry from a base in Worcester. 02-Jul-2001 S Daniels, the soup manufacturer, is looking at ways to boost its fortunes, which could involve a management buy-out or the formation of a strategic partnership. 02-Jul-2001 Allied Domecq has acquired the Buena Vista Winery in California for £61m, and is now planning to renew its interest in the Montana winery in New Zealand. 02-Jul-2001 Grampian Country Foods is in discussions with Aberdeenshire Council about plans to double the size of its chicken products plant in Banff, which could involve hundreds of new jobs. 28-Jun-2001 Unilever is planning to raise about £100m from the sale of two edible oil refineries in Germany and the Netherlands. 28-Jun-2001 Samworth Brothers is considering plans to set up a £15m factory in the Melton Mowbray area to produce a new unnamed food product, and is currently searching for a suitable site. 27-Jun-2001 First Milk has formed a partnership with the Dairygold Irish farmers' co-operative to expand its recently-acquired Aeron Valley cheese business in west Wales. 27-Jun-2001 Sepp's Gourmet Foods is in negotiations to sell McIntosh of Dyce, the Scottish food manufacturer with 400 staff. 21-Jun-2001 NIAB is in merger discussions with the Morley Research Centre, the farmer-owned research organisation based in Norfolk, in order to expand the range of services offered to arable farmers. 19-Jun-2001 Warburtons is to create a further 100 jobs later this year at its new £30m bread-making centre in Wednesbury. 18-Jun-2001 Pasta Foods is to shed up to 50 jobs at its own-brand pasta manufacturing business in Yarmouth. 18-Jun-2001 Carrick Council is to consider plans from Truro-based Business Location Services to build a £30m food manufacturing centre on a 34-acre site near Chacewater, creating a "centre of excellence for the Cornish food industry". 15-Jun-2001 Cadbury Schweppes has sold the international business of Royal Crown Cola to Cott Corporation of Canada for £68m. 14-Jun-2001 Speedibake is planning to close its bakery in Northampton with the loss of 250 jobs, in order to transfer production to other sites in Bradford and Wakefield. 13-Jun-2001 Golden Vale, the Irish dairy company, has received a £135m takeover offer from Kerry Group. 13-Jun-2001 Warburtons is investing a further £0.9m in new equipment for its Eastwood bakery in Nottinghamshire, including an automated ingredient feeder system and an extra bagging machine. 11-Jun-2001 Anglia Oils is to relocate the production activities of newly-acquired Chalice Foods from Leicestershire to a new factory at King George Dock in Hull. 11-Jun-2001 Natural Resources Institute is to shed up to 130 jobs at its science centre in Chatham following the discovery of a £9m accounting error. 08-Jun-2001 Dairy Crest is planning to spend up to £150m on acquisitions in the UK dairy sector over the next few years. 07-Jun-2001 AG Barr is said to be looking for a financial backer to launch a bid for the Britvic soft drinks business. 07-Jun-2001 Hibernia Foods has bought the Sara Lee frozen cakes factory near Bridlington for undisclosed terms, saving about 400 jobs. 06-Jun-2001 Uniq is in discussions to sell its Malton Foods pig processing business, and about five companies are interested. 05-Jun-2001 Dhamecha Foods is moving its drinks distribution depot from Islington to Enfield, which will provide more space for other products such as confectionery and snacks. 04-Jun-2001 Cobra, the supplier of beer to Indian restaurants, is planning to raise up to £50m in a flotation to fund the expansion of its overseas sales network. 04-Jun-2001 Stonegate Farmers is to close its egg packing plant at Sayers Common in Sussex with the loss of up to 50 jobs. 01-Jun-2001 Horizon Biscuits is considering plans to close its biscuit factory in Harlow with the loss of up to 330 jobs. 29-May-2001 Golden Vale is building a new research and development centre, as part of a £11m expansion at its cheese plant in Coleraine. 28-May-2001 Robert Wiseman Dairies has awarded a £3m contract to Clugston to build a distribution depot at Birtley, Tyne & Wear. 24-May-2001 Macduff Shellfish has acquired the mothballed Abacus factory in Mintlaw and plans to double its workforce to 240 by the end of this year. 22-May-2001 Compass has won a £28m contract to provide catering services to Royal Bank of Scotland over the next two years. 21-May-2001 United Biscuits is planning to close its KP McVitie's sales division as part of a restructuring programme that will shed up to 400 staff and increase its focus on the wholesale sector. 21-May-2001 Unilever is to shed up to 250 jobs at the former Bestfoods headquarters in Esher, Surrey, and the business will be relocated to its own Van Den Bergh premises in Crawley. 21-May-2001 Clover of Australia is to invest £5.4m setting up a food additives business in Europe, and is considering a flotation on Aim. 16-May-2001 Aunt Mollies Foods is to invest £1.9m in the expansion of its bakery in west Belfast, with the creation of 60 jobs over the next three years. 14-May-2001 Richmond Foods is to close its ice cream factory at Ashford in Kent with the loss of 180 jobs, and production will be transferred to North Yorkshire. 10-May-2001 Campbell Soup has completed the acquisition of the Oxo and Batchelors brands from Unilever, which involves the transfer of 525 staff in Worksop and 311 in Ashford. 08-May-2001 New Zealand Milk is to shed 45 of the 284 jobs at its European headquarters in Swindon, due to falling demand for butter. 07-May-2001 Welcome Break is to invest £5m converting 33 Granary restaurants at motorway service stations into new quick-service outlets called Food Connection. 04-May-2001 Scottish & Newcastle has won a contract to distribute its beers and soft drinks to 900 former Bass pubs recently acquired by Nomura. 04-May-2001 Horizon Biscuits is to invest £12m at its factory in Moreton, Wirral, in order to improve productivity and manufacture new products, and the company will be renamed BestBake Foods. 03-May-2001 Unilever is to shed 8,000 jobs worldwide following its acquisition of Bestfoods, and will announce plans for the closure of up to 30 factories later this year. 30-Apr-2001 Frederick Hiam Foods is planning to create up to 240 jobs at a new £6m vegetable processing factory in Brandon, Suffolk. 26-Apr-2001 Kerry Foods is to shed 25 of the 600 jobs at its factory in Poole, in order to transfer sausage production to its Manchester site and centralise its distribution operation in Milton Keynes. 26-Apr-2001 Hancocks Holdings has set up a £3.5m confectionery distribution warehouse at the Castle Business Park in Loughborough. 26-Apr-2001 Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries has announced plans to sell 130 pubs, close Mansfield Brewery, sell Camerons Brewery in Hartlepool to Castle Eden and close two distribution centres in Burton on Trent and Wrexham. 25-Apr-2001 Bronte Foods is investing £1m at its poultry and processed meats factory in Haworth. 23-Apr-2001 British Sugar is investing £25m in the installation of new resin separation technology at its Wissington factory in Norfolk. 20-Apr-2001 Associated British Foods is looking to spend up to £800m on acquisitions, and is thought to be interested in food ingredients businesses. 19-Apr-2001 RF Brookes has started recruiting 200 new workers at its ready meals factory in Newport, in order to handle the transfer of a £30m contract from Wolverhampton-based Sun Valley Foods. 19-Apr-2001 Stockbridge Technology Centre has reopened the former Ministry of Agriculture horticultural research facility near Selby, saving 25 of the 50 jobs, and plans to help local growers supply vegetables to the tourist catering industry. 10-Apr-2001 Agricultural Development & Advisory Service is to close its farm research and development site at Martyr Worthy, near Winchester, next March, and some of the 42 staff will transfer to Reading University's dairy research department. 10-Apr-2001 Allied Bakeries is to close its Bristol distribution depot in June with the loss of 74 jobs. 09-Apr-2001 Wards Poultry is closing its poultry factory in Tipton later this month, with the loss of 50 jobs. 06-Apr-2001 Novartis is to close its Ovaltine malted drinks factory at Kings Langley in Hertfordshire next year with the loss off of 245 jobs, in order to consolidate production at a site in Switzerland. 05-Apr-2001 Glenmorangie is forming a bottling and logistics joint venture with Drambuie Liqueur Company called Glenaird, which will result in the loss of about 50 jobs at Drambuie's production facility in Kirkliston. 03-Apr-2001 Orkney Islands Council is setting up two new food parks at Kirkwall and Stromness in partnership with Orkney Quality Food and Orkney Enterprise. 02-Apr-2001 Jacobs Bakery is to shed up to 180 jobs at factories in Liverpool and Wigston, Leicester, as part of a restructuring programme by French parent company Danone. 30-Mar-2001 Compass is forming a joint venture with Itochu Corporation to move into the Japanese foodservice market. 30-Mar-2001 S&A Foods has announced plans to build a £31m ready meals factory in Newcastle-under-Lyme, with the creation of 1,000 jobs by 2002. 28-Mar-2001 Hibernia Foods is to close its factory in Peterlee with the loss of about 200 jobs, in order to transfer the manufacture of hot puddings to its Hartlepool site. 27-Mar-2001 Nottingham City Council has proposed plans for the development of a £5.5m six-acre site for food manufacturing companies at Southglade Park, and construction could start in April 2002. 26-Mar-2001 Prize Food, the supplier of private label food products to supermarkets, has appointed UBS Warburg to investigate the possibility of selling the business, which could be worth about £100m. 26-Mar-2001 Poultec Training has submitted plans to Breckland Council to set up a new training centre for the food and poultry industry at South Green in Mid Norfolk. 23-Mar-2001 The Wine Corporation is to shed up to 60 of the 150 jobs at its mail order wine business in Northampton. 23-Mar-2001 Fyffes is to transfer its banana importing operation and up to 200 jobs from Southampton back to Portsmouth by March 2002. 22-Mar-2001 London Borough of Hounslow has agreed plans for the £12m rebuilding of the Western International Market at Heston, in order to improve storage facilities and meet EU food hygiene regulations. 19-Mar-2001 GoPack, the Edinburgh-based producer of the Umbro Hypotonic sports drink, has gone into liquidation following a contamination scare. 16-Mar-2001 Gilchris is seeking permission for a £4m expansion at its chocolate products factory in Fakenham, which would create 30 jobs. 16-Mar-2001 Northern Foods is to acquire the Fox's mints factory in Leicester from Nestle, but will close its Croydon factory in 2002 with the loss of up to 157 jobs. 15-Mar-2001 Cumbrian Seafoods is planning a £2.5m expansion at its factory in Maryport, which will create 75 new jobs. 14-Mar-2001 Capespan has started building a £1.5m fruit packing facility at Sheerness Docks, which will be operational by May. 14-Mar-2001 Exotic Farm Produce is expanding its Lincolnshire-based vegetable packing business with the acquisition of the former Elgro premises at Kirton. 14-Mar-2001 Christian Salvesen has restructured its food manufacturing business and shed about 50 jobs with the closure of factories in Dundee and Peterborough. 14-Mar-2001 Greencore has sold its Rowan Foods ready meals factory in Wrexham to Oscar Mayer. 14-Mar-2001 FD Brands, the drinks marketing company, has gone into liquidation. 14-Mar-2001 Brake Bros is seeking acquisitions in France in order to expand its European business supplying food to caterers. 13-Mar-2001 United Biscuits is to sell its 44% stake in the Young's Bluecrest frozen fish business to Legal & General Ventures, in order to focus on biscuits and savoury snacks. 12-Mar-2001 Arla Foods is to build a dairy and distribution centre on a 32-acre site in Stourton, Leeds, which will involve the relocation of its existing city centre site and the creation of up to 100 jobs. 09-Mar-2001 St Modwen has been selected to build the £50m national food heritage centre in Stafford, which will be called The Great British Kitchen and lead to the creation of up to 1,000 jobs. 09-Mar-2001 Shepherds Grove Mushrooms of Bury St Edmunds has gone into liquidation with the loss of about 200 jobs. 08-Mar-2001 Centura Foods is to close its Hartlepool factory, which makes chutney for the Sharwood's brand, with the loss of 176 jobs, in order to concentrate production at its Droylsden plant near Manchester. 08-Mar-2001 Lambrini, the producer of a perry drink, is planning a £15m expansion of storage capacity at its Huyton headquarters on Merseyside, with the creation of 200 jobs. 06-Mar-2001 Ethnic Cuisine is to create 125 new jobs at its ready meals factory in Swansea over the next three years, having completed a £6m expansion of the site. 06-Mar-2001 Discovery Foods, the manufacturer of Mexican foods, has opened a second factory in Daventry. 05-Mar-2001 South Derbyshire District Council has approved plans from the Amelca dairy farmers co-operative to build a milk processing factory at Dove Valley Park in Foston, with the creation of 150 jobs. 02-Mar-2001 Diageo is to reorganise its administrative functions onto a global basis by establishing two international centres in Hungary and North America, which could lead to job losses in Glasgow and Edinburgh. 02-Mar-2001 Bass, Allied Domecq and Whitbread are said to be planning to sell their Britvic soft drinks joint venture. 02-Mar-2001 Quest International has opened a new food flavourings distribution centre at the Wirral International Business Park in Bromborough, and the £3m site will be operated by TDG. 01-Mar-2001 Morrison Bowmore is to reduce output at the Glen Garioch Distillery in Oldmeldrum by 30-50% with the loss of six jobs, due to a downturn in demand for blended whisky. 28-Feb-2001 Superlife Foods is planning to close its flavoured milk factory in Bradford with the loss of up to 35 jobs, in order to transfer production to parent company Lancashire Dairies in Manchester. 26-Feb-2001 Compass is to invest £44m in a joint venture with Abu Dhabi National Hotels to offer food service management in countries throughout the Middle East. 26-Feb-2001 E Timm & Son is to close its milling business in Goole in April with the loss of 72 jobs, due to overcapacity in the market. 26-Feb-2001 St Merryn Meat is to close its meat processing plant at Roundswell in North Devon with the loss of 80 jobs. 23-Feb-2001 Sara Lee is looking to sell its cake factory in Bridlington, and is shedding 200 of the 750 jobs to make it easier to sell the site as a going concern. 22-Feb-2001 Scottish & Newcastle is to close the Scottish Courage bottling and canning facility at the Fountain Brewery in Edinburgh with the loss of 170 jobs, but £8m will be invested in a new keg packing operation at the site. 22-Feb-2001 Albert Fisher is to close its frozen vegetable factory in Grimsby with the loss of 180 jobs, in order to transfer production to its Kings Lynn plant. 21-Feb-2001 Cadbury Schweppes is considering plans to close some of its 56 factories around the world over the next three years in order to increase efficiency. 20-Feb-2001 Joseph Heler Cheese is investing £1m in a new office block and IT system at its dairy in Cheshire, and is likely to create a number of new jobs in sales and marketing. 20-Feb-2001 Donington Park is to spend £1m revamping its catering facilities, and has awarded FMC a five-year contract to supply the venue with food and drink. 20-Feb-2001 Compass has won a £65m contract to run the catering at Reno-Tahoe International Airport in the US. 20-Feb-2001 Britannia Biscuits has opened a new £4m factory at the South Tees Imperial Food Park near Middlesbrough, with the creation of up to 150 jobs. 19-Feb-2001 Blavod is planning to raise £4m in a flotation on Aim to fund the marketing of its Black Vodka. 16-Feb-2001 Findus is to launch a foodservice business in the UK, by offering a range of frozen Swedish specialities in pubs, restaurants, schools and hospitals. 15-Feb-2001 Cadbury Schweppes is looking to expand the distribution of its confectionery products into new outlets such as hospitals, pubs and other public places, partly through the use of vending machines. 15-Feb-2001 Sundora has opened a new dried fruit and nuts distribution centre on the Airfield Industrial Estate at Full Sutton. 15-Feb-2001 Geest has bought the Cherry Valley ready meals factory in Grimsby, and plans to expand the site and the 85-strong workforce. 12-Feb-2001 Carlsberg-Tetley is planning to reopen its Cambrian Yard brewery in Wrexham in order to produce up to 10,000 barrels of Wrexham lager within 18 months. 12-Feb-2001 Robert Wiseman Dairies is to centralise production of glass-bottled milk for the whole of Scotland at its revamped Aberdeen dairy, which will safeguard 450 jobs. 08-Feb-2001 Sun Valley Foods is to shed 450 jobs at its poultry products factory at Bilbrook near Wolverhampton, in order to transfer production of recipe dishes to Newport-based RF Brookes. 05-Feb-2001 Tulip International is planning to upgrade its recently-acquired Gott Foods poultry products plant in Morecambe. 05-Feb-2001 DSM Food Specialties is to relocate its dairy ingredients business from Tamworth to Aldridge near Birmingham in March. 05-Feb-2001 Princes Foods is in negotiations to acquire Beta Foods, the fish paste and canned chicken company. 05-Feb-2001 Petty Wood is planning to set up a field sales force to expand its wholesale foods business into cash and carries and forecourts. 05-Feb-2001 Needler Bluebird is to shed up to 120 jobs at its confectionery factory in Hull, in order to secure the long-term future of the business. 01-Feb-2001 Heinz is to invest a further £2m in its Grimsby pizza factory, which will increase the product range and create new jobs later this year. 01-Feb-2001 Abacus Frozen Foods has closed its fish processing factory at Mintlaw near Peterhead with the loss of 100 jobs, having failed to find a buyer. 01-Feb-2001 Dairy Crest has confirmed plans to invest £39m at its Severnside dairy in Gloucestershire with the creation of 320 jobs, but five other sites will be closed with the loss of 600 jobs. 01-Feb-2001 East Riding Council is in discussions with Van Dijk Nurseries and a number of other local growers about the possibility of building a major glasshouse project on a 700-acre site near Beverley, which would grow about 40 different foods. 30-Jan-2001 Unilever has confirmed plans to sell a number of European dry soup and sauce brands to Campbell Soup of the US for £633m, in order to win approval for its acquisition of Bestfoods. 30-Jan-2001 NWF is planning to double production of blended animal feeds at its Nantwich plant, with the creation of 40 jobs. 29-Jan-2001 Ashdown Foods, the East Grinstead-based bulk dairy products trading company, has ceased trading having failed to find a buyer. 26-Jan-2001 British Sugar is to close three factories in Kidderminster, Ipswich and Bardney near Lincoln, in order to concentrate beet processing at its six other sites. 24-Jan-2001 The Eden Project near St Austell in Cornwall is creating 100 catering jobs in preparation for the March opening of its £86m complex of greenhouses. 23-Jan-2001 Kerry Group is to close its Kingsway Fresh Foods factory in Belfast over the next two months, and many of the 80 staff will be transferred to the Denny meat products factory in Portadown. 22-Jan-2001 Golden Wonder is to invest £3m in new manufacturing capacity at its Corby plant having reached agreement with General Mills of the US to produce the Bugles savoury snack for the UK market. 22-Jan-2001 Unilever is in negotiations to sell its US bakery business and a number of European brands, in order to raise up to £1.3bn and comply with the regulatory conditions for its recent acquisition of Bestfoods. 22-Jan-2001 McCormick is to shed 160 jobs at its Haddenham spices factory near Thame in order to transfer the manufacture of retail products to a site in France. 19-Jan-2001 Fyffes is to freeze investment in its WorldofFruit internet exchange for fresh produce with the loss of half its 20 Dublin-based staff, as the system has failed to attract enough users. 19-Jan-2001 Cadbury Schweppes is expanding in Argentina with the £15m purchase of the Mantecol confectionery product from Georgalos Hnos. 19-Jan-2001 Greencore is to close the Derby headquarters of its Hazlewood Foods business in March, with the loss of up to 45 jobs. 17-Jan-2001 GBL International has confirmed plans to create 48 jobs at a new soft drinks bottling plant in Clay Cross. 15-Jan-2001 Breckland Council is to consider plans from Sunmark Produce to set up a new processing plant at Attleborough to handle organic foods imported from South Africa, which would create 30 jobs. 12-Jan-2001 Faccenda is to close the Webbs Country Foods chicken products factory in Lymington, Hampshire, with the loss of up to 500 jobs, but has also announced plans to invest £6m at sites in Telford, Dudley, Wiltshire and Northants. 11-Jan-2001 Grampian Country Foods is seeking permission to convert its chicken processing site on the edge of Edinburgh into a business park, which would involve the relocation of its factory to a greenfield site, possibly in West Lothian. 11-Jan-2001 Christian Salvesen is in negotiations to sell its closure-threatened food storage plant in Dundee to Alpine Cold Stores of Grimsby. 11-Jan-2001 Geest is to close one of its plants at Abbeyvale in north London in order to consolidate production of dressed salads at Spalding. 11-Jan-2001 H Fletcher & Son, the Hull-based bakery and cooked meats company with 150 employees, has been put up for sale. 10-Jan-2001 Albert Fisher is seeking a suitable site in York for a new frozen and chilled foods factory, which would involve selling its existing plant at Skelton Park to developers. 10-Jan-2001 Punjab Kitchen is moving its frozen meals business to a £1m site in South Shields, where it will create 22 jobs. 08-Jan-2001 Interbrew has been ordered by the Competition Commission to sell the brewing business recently acquired from Bass. 04-Jan-2001 United Norwest Co-op is to create 30 jobs at its Norpak Food Services warehouse in Eccleshall, having won a new contract to store and distribute temperature-controlled products. 03-Jan-2001 Lockerbie Creamery is to recruit 15 new staff to meet rising demand for cheese. 03-Jan-2001 Dairy Crest has won planning permission to expand its Severnside Creamery near Stroud, which will involve a new blow moulding facility to produce plastic bottles and the creation of 12 jobs. 02-Jan-2001 United Milk has confirmed plans to build a £45m dairy processing plant at Westbury in Wiltshire by early 2002, having secured £28m from Bank of Scotland. 02-Jan-2001 Toms of Denmark is planning to invest £50m in the UK over the next three years by acquiring a number of small confectionery manufacturers and expanding its two existing factories. 02-Jan-2001 JBB Greater Europe has sold the Bruichladdich whisky distillery on Islay to the London-based Murray McDavid firm of wine merchants for £6.5m, and production will resume in April. 02-Jan-2001 LB Meat Products is to invest £2m in new premises in Newtownabbey, with the creation of 25 jobs over the next three years. 02-Jan-2001 The information on this page comes from the UK Activity Report. 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