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Food & Drink 2005
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The information below comes from the UK Activity Report.
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Defra is to close two wildlife control offices in Stroud and Truro next year, with the loss of at least 23 jobs. 20-Dec-2005 Cadbury Schweppes is to build a £70m chewing gum factory in Poland by 2008, while £30m is being invested in the expansion of a Mexican factory. 13-Dec-2005 Brooks Soft Drinks of Herefordshire is to go into liquidation through Begbies Traynor, with the loss of up to 55 jobs. 09-Dec-2005 Young's Bluecrest is to set up a 64,000 sq ft smoked salmon factory at Starlaw Park in Livingston, in order to expand its Macrae of Edinburgh division. 07-Dec-2005 SHS Group is planning to create at least 20 new IT, marketing, accounting and logistics jobs at its recently-opened £5m headquarters in Belfast over the next two years. 05-Dec-2005 Grampian Country Foods is to shed 135 agency jobs at its food processing plant in Doncaster. 02-Dec-2005 Whyte & Mackay is considering plans to sell its Invergordon distillery in Easter Ross, which employs 180 staff and is valued at £200m. 01-Dec-2005 Geest has shed 100 human resources, marketing and IT jobs at offices in Spalding and Peterborough. 01-Dec-2005 NWF has announced plans for the £15m expansion of its agriculture and distribution business in Cheshire, including the development of three new warehouses by early 2007. 30-Nov-2005 Hero Group of Switzerland is planning to launch its Fruit2Day fruit juice brand in the UK, backed by a £12m marketing campaign. 28-Nov-2005 Dairygold Consumer Foods is planning to close a cheese packing plant at Felinfach, West Wales, with the loss of 115 jobs. 23-Nov-2005 Carlsberg UK is to shed 70 jobs across the country, including 18 finance, HR, telesales and administration jobs in Leeds and the rest in Northamptonshire and at several distribution depots. 21-Nov-2005 Aulds is to invest a further £6m at a frozen and chilled desserts factory in Renfrewshire, having just opened a £2m temporary replacement for the factory that burnt down in September. 21-Nov-2005 North Midland Construction has won a £3m contract from Tulip to upgrade a meat processing factory in Tipton. 17-Nov-2005 Britvic has announced plans for a £500m flotation next month, in order to benefit from the UK's rising demand for soft drinks. 15-Nov-2005 Marks & Spencer is considering plans to move into the £1bn event catering market, providing sandwiches at concerts, trade shows and sporting events. 14-Nov-2005 Northern Foods has won a £30m contract to supply ready meals to Asda, which will create more than 200 jobs at factories in Carlisle, Grantham, Sheffield and Nottingham. 09-Nov-2005 Warburtons is to create up to 140 jobs at its new £10m bakery, which is due to open at the former Rathbones site in Rogerstone, South Wales, in July. 07-Nov-2005 Tate & Lyle is looking to make bolt-on acquisitions of up to £70m, while its first half capital expenditure of £111m will be doubled. 07-Nov-2005 Coors has confirmed plans to shed more than 200 jobs at its brewery in Burton-on-Trent over the next three years. 03-Nov-2005 Weetabix is to shed 112 of the 1,700 jobs at its breakfast cereals factories in Burton Latimer and Corby. 03-Nov-2005 Associated British Nutrition is to close a feed mill in Framlingham with the loss of about 35 jobs, in order to transfer production to sites in Walsingham and Bury St Edmunds. 31-Oct-2005 QED Food Processing Systems, the developer of meat tracking systems, is planning to raise £3m in a flotation on Aim. 31-Oct-2005 Compass, the contract caterer, has shed 200 management jobs, as part of a £50m cost-cutting campaign. 31-Oct-2005 Duchy Originals Foods is to set up an organic pastries bakery in Launceston next April, with the creation of an initial ten jobs. 27-Oct-2005 Golden Wonder, the snacks manufacturer, is to carry out a strategic review by the end of the year, which could result in the business being sold. 20-Oct-2005 Young's Bluecrest is to close a seafood factory in Hull in March, with the loss of 131 jobs, in order to transfer production of smoked fish to Fraserburgh. 18-Oct-2005 British Cattle Movement Service is to create 100 new jobs in Workington by the end of the year. 17-Oct-2005 Unilever is considering plans to outsource its payroll, human resources and IT functions, which would affect up to 2,500 jobs across 25 European countries. 17-Oct-2005 Richmond Foods is to invest £14m at its ice cream factory in Wigan over the next three years, with the creation of 60 jobs. 14-Oct-2005 The Scottish Executive is to provide £6.5m of funding to 67 businesses for the modernisation of fishing vessels and fish processing plants, which will help to create 100 jobs. 14-Oct-2005 Sygen International, the pig and shrimp breeding company valued at £192m, has received a takeover approach from an unnamed company. 13-Oct-2005 Longslow Food Group is to close its milk processing plant in Mochdre, near Colwyn Bay, with the loss of 100 jobs, and the Manchester depot is also expected to close with the loss of 47 jobs. 12-Oct-2005 Fredericks Dairies is investing £10m in a new automated production facility in Lancashire. 11-Oct-2005 Marine Harvest is to close its salmon fish farm in Invergarry later this month. 05-Oct-2005 Simply Go is to close its salads factory in Bath over the next few weeks with the loss of 30 jobs, in order to transfer production to its site in Cwmbran. 05-Oct-2005 Bernard Matthews is to shed 110 jobs at its food processing operations in Norfolk and Suffolk. 03-Oct-2005 Premier Foods is in negotiations to sell its Typhoo Tea business to Apeejay Tea of India for up to £100m. 03-Oct-2005 Ferndale Foods is considering plans to shed up to 600 jobs at its factory in Thamesmead, having lost a contract to supply ready meals to Asda. 30-Sep-2005 Walkers is to set up a new snacks factory in Skelmersdale by March, with the creation of more than 100 jobs. 29-Sep-2005 Robert Wiseman Dairies is about to acquire a site in Taunton to set up a new £30m dairy by spring 2007, which will employ up to 500 staff. 29-Sep-2005 Warburtons is to employ 100 workers at a bakery in Stockton when it becomes fully operational in December, following a £6.5m investment at the site. 27-Sep-2005 Huntapac is to spend £2m on a new carrot washing production line at its Tarleton packhouse in Lancashire. 27-Sep-2005 Deans Foods has suffered a major fire at its egg packing centre at North Scarle in Lincolnshire, and some of the 400 staff have been offered work at its site in Walesby. 23-Sep-2005 Walkers is to close its snacks factory in Swansea over the next six months, with the loss of 250 jobs, in order to transfer production to other sites in Durham and Skelmersdale. 22-Sep-2005 Princes is creating 60 new jobs at its soft drinks factory in Manchester, with vacancies for manufacturing operatives, engineers and production managers. 22-Sep-2005 Heinz is looking to sell its frozen and chilled food operations in Europe over the next 12 months, which could affect up to 2,300 workers in the UK and Ireland. 21-Sep-2005 Deli Lites is to expand production at its sandwich factory at Warrenpoint in County Down, with the creation of 12 new jobs. 21-Sep-2005 The National Farmers Union has begun recruiting staff for its new £6.5m headquarters due to be completed at Stoneleigh Park in Warwickshire in December, and some of the 120 staff will relocate from London. 19-Sep-2005 Aulds has suffered a major fire at its £6m chilled desserts factory in Inchinnan, Renfrewshire, which employs 300 staff. 19-Sep-2005 Sainsbury's has announced that John Baarda is to create an initial 32 jobs at a new £3m tomato production facility in Billingham, and the 23-acre site will use carbon dioxide and steam produced by Terra Industries. 16-Sep-2005 Cereal Partners is to close its breakfast cereals factory in Welwyn Garden City in 2007 with the loss of 370 jobs, in order to transfer production to its site in Staverton, Wiltshire. 16-Sep-2005 Benriach Distillery has secured a £5.4m funding package from Clydesdale Bank to acquire additional warehousing space in Elgin and to buy new stock from Pernod Ricard. 16-Sep-2005 Interbrew UK has awarded a £3.5m contract to Dew to extend its brewery in Magor, South Wales. 15-Sep-2005 Gold Star Soft Drinks has won planning permission to set up a £1.3m soft drinks factory in Saltash over the next 18 months, with the creation of at least 14 new jobs. 09-Sep-2005 Premier Foods is planning to invest £2m at its recently-acquired Marlow Foods meat alternatives business, including marketing initiatives and new product development. 07-Sep-2005 Oriental Express Frozen Foods is to close its factory in Fakenham in December with the loss of 90 jobs, in order to transfer production to Padleys in Boston. 07-Sep-2005 Cadbury Schweppes is looking to sell its European drinks business for up to £1.1bn, including a wide range of soft drinks and mineral waters. 05-Sep-2005 Coors, the brewer, is said to be planning to shed 100 jobs at its head office in Burton-upon-Trent. 05-Sep-2005 GoLower, the Edinburgh-based supplier of low-sugar snack bars, is considering plans for a flotation on Aim next year to fund expansion into continental Europe and the US. 31-Aug-2005 Direct Wines is to set up a 17,000 sq ft wine distribution centre at the Gloucester Business Park in Brockworth by 2007, which should create 300 new jobs for the Gloucester area. 30-Aug-2005 Deans Foods is to close its egg packing factory at Seamer near Middlesbrough in September, with the loss of about 90 jobs. 29-Aug-2005 Charnwood Borough Council has approved plans for the development of an egg packing factory at Sunrise Poultry in Sileby, with the creation of up to 60 jobs. 29-Aug-2005 CFH is to close its frozen foods factory at Standlake in Oxfordshire in September with the loss of 40 jobs, in order to transfer production to its site in Wrexham. 29-Aug-2005 Diageo is to sell its remaining stake in US-based General Mills later this year, in order to move out of the food industry. 29-Aug-2005 Unilever has appointed Goldman Sachs to conduct a review of its frozen foods business, which could lead to the sale of some or all of the assets. 22-Aug-2005 Sildarvinnslan of Iceland is seeking permission from Shetland Islands Council to build a major fishmeal processing factory at Sullom Voe next year. 17-Aug-2005 Uniq is considering plans to close its seafood factory in Finnarts Bay, Stranraer, with the loss of 90 jobs. 15-Aug-2005 Associated British Foods is planning to sell off a 60-acre disused British Sugar site in Kidderminster to a property developer. 15-Aug-2005 St Peter's Brewery, the independent Suffolk brewery, has been put up for sale for £20m. 15-Aug-2005 United Biscuits is considering plans to return to the stock market next year, with a £2bn flotation. 15-Aug-2005 Highland Council is to consider plans from Praban na Linne for the development of a £3m all-Gaelic distillery and visitor centre on the Isle of Skye. 12-Aug-2005 Gate Gourmet, the Heathrow-based airline catering company, has dismissed 350 workers following a strike. 11-Aug-2005 Greencore is planning to shed up to 225 of the 900 jobs at its two pizza factories at the Deeside Industrial Park, while 20 will be lost at its Runcorn distribution centre, five at the Salford bakery and 15 at head office. 09-Aug-2005 The Scottish Shellfish Marketing Group is to invest £0.4m in new production lines at its factory in Bellshill, with the creation of up to 20 jobs. 08-Aug-2005 Northern Foods is creating 60 new jobs at the Palethorpes pie factory in Market Drayton, following a £2.3m expansion programme. 05-Aug-2005 SABMiller of South Africa is to set up a new company to manage the marketing and distribution of its beer brands in the UK. 25-Jul-2005 Dairy Crest is to shed up to 29 of the 210 jobs at its dairy in Totnes this summer. 21-Jul-2005 Devon Cider is to relocate to the former Thomas Hardy bottling factory in Tiverton by the end of the year, with the creation of up to 50 jobs. 20-Jul-2005 Hilliers has suffered a major fire at its pastry products factory near Plymouth, casting doubt on the future of almost 400 jobs. 19-Jul-2005 Yeo Valley is planning to relocate its south Devon-based ice cream factory and 25 staff to Newton Abbot. 18-Jul-2005 Milk Link is to close the former Tanners milk plant in Sible Hedingham, Essex, next year, with the loss of 70 jobs. 14-Jul-2005 Unilever is to transfer about 100 European managers to Switzerland, in order to simplify its operational structure and create a new subsidiary called Unilever Supply Chain Company. 11-Jul-2005 Rodda's Creamery is planning a £2.8m expansion at its clotted cream factory in Cornwall, with the creation of ten jobs. 05-Jul-2005 Carlsberg is to invest £13m in a new canning line for its Joshua Tetley brewery in Leeds, with the creation of 24 jobs. 04-Jul-2005 Sir Robert McAlpine has won a £6m contract from Scotbeef to build a production facility in Glasgow. 30-Jun-2005 Wrigley is to close its recently-acquired Altoid mints factory in Bridgend over the next nine months, with the loss of 173 jobs, in order to transfer production to the US. 30-Jun-2005 Premier Foods is said to be considering plans to sell off its tea business, which includes the Typhoo brand. 28-Jun-2005 Kiotech, the supplier of feeding supplements for the fishing and aquaculture sectors, has raised £2.2m in a share placing on Aim. 27-Jun-2005 Morrisons is planning to expand its recently-acquired abattoir in Turriff, which is expected to involve an increase in the 200-strong workforce. 27-Jun-2005 Faroe Seafood is looking to create more than 100 new jobs in Grimsby over the next two years, and plans to set up a manufacturing base, either directly or outsourced to another company. 27-Jun-2005 Inter Link Foods is to close its recently-acquired Newton House Bakery in Ravensthorpe in September, but some of the 154 staff will relocate to Yorkshire Cottage Bakery in Bradford. 20-Jun-2005 Geest is to shed 120 jobs at its bread and pasta factory in Barton on Humber following a recent fire. 20-Jun-2005 RHM, the food manufacturing group valued at up to £1.3bn, has confirmed plans for a flotation next month. 20-Jun-2005 Moorhouses is planning to invest £0.8m in the expansion of its Burnley brewery and the opening of new pubs. 16-Jun-2005 Weetabix has won planning permission from Kettering Council to expand its breakfast cereals site in Burton Latimer by over 14.5 hectares, including a new warehouse and two production units. 16-Jun-2005 GW Padley is seeking permission from North Kesteven District Council for the £30m expansion of its Anwick poultry factory near Sleaford, with the creation of up to 200 jobs. 16-Jun-2005 Lees of Scotland, the manufacturer of macaroon bars with 130 staff, is planning a £4m flotation on Aim. 14-Jun-2005 Bacardi Martini is to shed 30 of the 540 jobs at its alcopops bottling plant in Southampton. 13-Jun-2005 Trebor Bassett has suffered a major fire at its confectionery factory in Pontefract. 10-Jun-2005 Real Good Food Company is to close its Coolfresh catering business in Rayleigh, Essex, with the loss of 80 jobs. 03-Jun-2005 Macduff Shellfish has secured planning permission from Aberdeenshire Council to build a £2m coldstore at its site in Mintlaw. 02-Jun-2005 Heinz is looking to sell off a number of non-core brands in Europe, which could affect about 2,000 jobs at sites in Okehampton, Leamington Spa, Fakenham, Westwick and Dundalk. 30-May-2005 ABP is planning to close its meat packing plant in Perth, with the loss of up to 67 jobs. 27-May-2005 Uniq is looking to reduce its headcount by 500 by 2008, in order to save £20m a year, and its salad operations in Denmark and Sweden have been identified for sale. 24-May-2005 G Bush & Son is to close its abattoir in Norfolk in July, with the loss of 20 jobs. 24-May-2005 Young's Bluecrest is planning to close the Merson & Gerry fish processing factory in Aberdeen next month, with the loss of 26 jobs. 23-May-2005 Moy Park has secured £6m from Invest Northern Ireland to support a £40m investment in the expansion of its poultry processing plants in Craigavon, Dungannon, Moira and Lisnaskea. 19-May-2005 Compass is looking to cut costs in its catering business by £50m over the next 18 months, which could involve job losses from its 110,000-strong UK workforce. 19-May-2005 Anglo Beef Processors is to set up a new beef packing factory in the Craigavon area, with the creation of 80 jobs. 17-May-2005 Organic Farm Foods is set to close its site in Lampeter with the loss of 50 jobs, in order to transfer some of its vegetable packing to Leominster. 12-May-2005 Lowes Soft Drinks is to shed 25 jobs at its Cardiff-based soft drinks business, in order to transfer the delivery franchise to a wholesale company. 10-May-2005 Cadbury Schweppes is planning to invest £40m in the expansion of its Bournville chocolate confectionery factory in Birmingham by autumn 2006. 10-May-2005 Princes Soft Drinks is to create 25 new jobs at the Eden Valley mineral water production plant in Cumbria, following a £5m investment. 09-May-2005 Ballymoney Foods is to shed 20 jobs at its potato processing factory in County Antrim. 06-May-2005 Kingmoor Technical Services, the Carlisle-based food testing company, is looking to expand into a 9,000 sq ft site and double its 37-strong workforce over the next two years. 06-May-2005 Marine Harvest is to close a salmon processing factory on Scalpay in the Western Isles with the loss of 50 jobs, and a further 70 jobs will be lost through the company's merger with Stolt Seafoods. 05-May-2005 Faroe Seafood is to relocate its UK head office from Preston to Grimsby this summer, with the creation of a few administration jobs. 04-May-2005 Dairy Crest is planning to acquire the country's largest regional dairy business from the Midlands Co-operative Society, which could lead to the closure of Dairy Crest's milk processing plant in Birmingham with the loss of 330 jobs. 04-May-2005 ABP is to mothball its abattoir in Bathgate, West Lothian, at the end of May with the loss of 80 jobs. 02-May-2005 RHM is planning a multi-million pound investment at its flour milling sites in Manchester, Selby, Southampton and Gainsborough, but its Hull mill will close in 2006 with the loss of up to 41 jobs. 02-May-2005 Coca-Cola is to invest £53m in the development of a new bottling plant at Knockmore Hill near Lisburn, in order to replace its existing site in Lambeg. 28-Apr-2005 Dairy Farmers of Britain is to end yoghurt production at the Whitby Creamery in North Yorkshire, with the loss of about 50 of the 200 jobs. 28-Apr-2005 Dean's of Huntly is seeking permission from Aberdeenshire Council to expand its shortbread factory at a cost of £0.75m, with the creation of up to 30 jobs. 28-Apr-2005 KPMG has announced that undisclosed buyers have been found for the Rathbones bakery sites in Wigan, Wakefield, Middlesbrough, Walsall, Leicester and Peterborough. 27-Apr-2005 BakeMark UK is to close its bakery in Milton Keynes in May, with the loss of almost 100 jobs, although some staff may relocate to its factory on Merseyside. 27-Apr-2005 Warburtons is seeking permission to refurbish its recently-acquired bakery in Stockton, before bringing it back into production. 25-Apr-2005 The Army School of Catering is planning to relocate from Aldershot to the Army Technical Foundation College site at Arborfield Garrison in 2006. 25-Apr-2005 JH Milne, the Peterhead-based fish processing company, has ceased trading with the loss of 60 jobs. 25-Apr-2005 Dungannon Meats is to create 30 new jobs at its meat processing plant in County Tyrone, having secured a new order to supply Co-op stores. 18-Apr-2005 Grampian Country Foods is to invest £16m in the expansion of its meat processing plant at Broxburn near Edinburgh with the creation of 200 jobs, but 330 jobs will be lost with the closure of its factory in Buckie. 18-Apr-2005 Hygrade Foods is seeking permission for the £6m expansion of its meat processing factory in Corsham, with the creation of 80 jobs over the next three years. 15-Apr-2005 Kettle Produce is to shed 226 jobs at its fresh produce business in Fife, but affected staff are being invited to apply for 125 new positions. 14-Apr-2005 Co-operative Group is to close the Townville Bakery in Castleford in May, with the loss of almost 100 jobs. 14-Apr-2005 Findus, the Newcastle-based frozen foods manufacturer with 420 staff, has been acquired by a former manager of its Swedish parent company, and is now expected to move back into the frozen fish market. 13-Apr-2005 Maldon Crystal Salt Company has secured planning permission to set up a new salt processing plant on farmland in Tolleshunt Major, with the creation of six jobs. 13-Apr-2005 Wolverhampton & Dudley is in talks to acquire Jennings, the Cumbria-based brewery and chain of 128 pubs that is valued at £46m. 12-Apr-2005 John Innes Centre is to shed 35 scientific jobs at its Norwich-based research institute, while its support staff will be combined with the nearby Institute of Food Research. 11-Apr-2005 Centura Foods is to close three warehouses in Droylsden, Salford and Middlewich with the loss of 90 jobs, in order to consolidate its operations at a national distribution centre run by Great Bear in Skelmersdale. 11-Apr-2005 Dairy Farmers of Britain is to close the Llangadog Creamery in South Wales later this year, with the loss of up to 200 jobs. 07-Apr-2005 Allied Domecq, the spirits group valued at about £8.8bn, has received a takeover approach from Pernod Ricard and Fortune Brands. 06-Apr-2005 Geest has suffered a major fire at its bread and pasta factory in Barton on Humber. 05-Apr-2005 Old Bushmills Distillery is planning a £10m expansion at its whiskey distillery in Co Antrim, with the creation of 26 jobs. 05-Apr-2005 Direct Table Foods is to build a new bacon factory at Saxon Business Park in Bury St Edmunds by the end of the year, with the creation of 75 jobs, following the recent fire at its original site. 05-Apr-2005 Cromer Crab Company has submitted plans to expand the chilled dispatch and ingredients storage facilities at its shellfish factory in North Norfolk, with the creation of an unspecified number of jobs. 05-Apr-2005 Whyte & Mackay has awarded a £10m contract to Tulloch Construction to build a whisky bottling plant in Grangemouth. 04-Apr-2005 AG Barr is to relocate about 300 staff from eight Scottish sites to its main soft drinks manufacturing plant in Cumbernauld, as part of a £17m three-year investment. 01-Apr-2005 East Midlands Development Agency is planning to set up a £8m food mall supplying local delicacies, and suitable sites are being considered throughout the region. 31-Mar-2005 Department for Education & Skills has announced plans to provide an extra £220m to improve the quality of school meals over the next three years. 30-Mar-2005 RHM is in negotiations with two companies for the sale of its Golden West division, which supplies buns, ketchup and soft drink syrups to McDonald's. 30-Mar-2005 Lloyd Maunder has lost a contract to supply lamb to Sainsbury's, prompting speculation about job losses at its meat processing plant near Cullompton. 29-Mar-2005 Dairy Farmers of Britain is planning to acquire the dairy division of Lincolnshire Co-operative, which employs 280 staff at Boultham Park Dairy and eight depots, for £5.5m. 23-Mar-2005 Marlow Foods, the manufacturer of Quorn substitute meat products with 340 staff on Teesside, is expected to be auctioned by owner Montagu Private Equity. 22-Mar-2005 RR Spink & Sons is to recruit 25 extra staff at its fish processing business in Arbroath over the next three months. 21-Mar-2005 Mars is to shed 400 of the 1,500 jobs at its confectionery factory in Slough, while a further 200 jobs will go at plants in Leicestershire, Peterborough, Kings Lynn and Leeds. 11-Mar-2005 Samworth Brothers is to invest £10m in the expansion of its Kensey Foods hot and cold desserts factory in Launceston, Cornwall, with the creation of 200 jobs over the next few years. 08-Mar-2005 Allerdale Council has received plans from Dutch consortium Partners In Cheese to build a £37m cheese factory at the Lillyhall industrial estate, with the creation of an initial 45 jobs. 08-Mar-2005 Muller has secured an endorsement from a government planning inspector to double the size of its desserts factory in Market Drayton, with the creation of at least 300 new jobs over the next five years. 07-Mar-2005 Branston Potatoes and QV Foods are to combine their potato packing operations by 2008, in order to improve the service offered to Tesco, which could lead to the transfer of some of QV's 320 staff to Branston sites. 03-Mar-2005 Defra is to set up a new regional headquarters for its Veterinary Service at the Parc Pensarn site in Carmarthen, and 70 staff will relocate from its existing office in the town centre later this year. 02-Mar-2005 One NorthEast has offered a £0.14m grant to The Tanfield Food Company to help create 45 jobs at a new gourmet foods manufacturing business in Tanfield Lea. 01-Mar-2005 Cavaghan & Gray is planning to spend £3m extending its food factory at Eastern Way in Carlisle. 28-Feb-2005 Muntons Malt is to close its malting plant in Kirkcaldy later this year, with the loss of 29 jobs, in order to transfer the work to sites in Bridlington and Stowmarket. 28-Feb-2005 Romney Marsh Potato Company is to shed 81 of the 108 jobs at its potato packing operation in Kent, following the loss of a contract with Tesco. 28-Feb-2005 Bernard Matthews is to close part of its turkey products factory in Great Witchingham, with the loss of up to 175 jobs. 25-Feb-2005 Castell Howell Foods is to expand its food distribution business to Avonmouth with the creation of 15 jobs, following the acquisition of Bristol-based Pan Aroma. 23-Feb-2005 Direct Table Foods is seeking a new site in the Bury St Edmunds area to rebuild a bacon factory, following a fire at its previous plant. 23-Feb-2005 Tate & Lyle is to set up a venture capital fund to help companies develop new food ingredients, which should supplement its own research and development work. 22-Feb-2005 Warburtons is planning to spend a further £250m expanding its bakery operations across the country over the next five years, with a particular emphasis on the south and south west. 21-Feb-2005 Glenisla Foods is to close its Berwick-based seafoods business with the loss of 30 jobs. 17-Feb-2005 Deans Foods is planning to close its egg packing plant in Dereham with the loss of about 50 jobs, in order to transfer the work to its other sites. 14-Feb-2005 Saxby's is to shed 200 of the 325 jobs at its pastries factory in Wellingborough, in order to cease production of delicatessen-style baked products. 11-Feb-2005 Grampian Country Foods has shed 50 of the 500 jobs at its Welsh Country Foods meat processing plant in Gaerwen. 10-Feb-2005 Furniss Foods is to receive £0.25m of funding from the South West Regional Development Agency to invest in new machinery and secure the future of 150 jobs at its biscuit factory in Cornwall. 10-Feb-2005 Farm Fed Chickens is to shed 70 of the 350 jobs at its chicken processing plant in Coleraine, County Londonderry. 07-Feb-2005 Coldwater Seafood is planning to close the former Cavaghan & Gray fish processing factory in Grimsby, and some of the 240 staff are expected to transfer to other sites. 04-Feb-2005 BOCM Pauls is planning to acquire the game feeds operation of Cambridgeshire-based Clark & Butcher, while the remaining animal feeds business in Soham will close with the loss of 43 jobs. 03-Feb-2005 John Sisk has won a £11m contract from Coca-Cola to build a materials handling and storage facility at the bottling plant in Edmonton. 02-Feb-2005 Greggs is to build a new £13m 57,000 sq ft savoury production plant at Longbenton on Tyneside by 2006, with the creation of 50 jobs. 31-Jan-2005 Princes is to shed 88 jobs at its soft drinks factory in Glasgow, in order to transfer some production to Bradford, while a plant in Oxford will close with the transfer of chilled fruit juice production to Manchester. 27-Jan-2005 Arla Foods is to close its dairy distribution centre at Stratford in east London in April, but 140 of the 180 staff are expected to be redeployed at its Oakthorpe site near Hatfield. 26-Jan-2005 The North West Development Agency has offered a £1m grant to secure the future of 1,100 jobs at the McVitie's Biscuit factory in Carlisle, which recently suffered flood damage. 26-Jan-2005 Macphie has announced a £2.5m investment in new warehousing and equipment to expand its food ingredients manufacturing business at Glenbervie near Stonehaven. 24-Jan-2005 Fosters Traditional Foods, the food and confectionery supplier, has secured a £5m investment from 3i. 24-Jan-2005 Mars is said to be looking into the possibility of restructuring its European confectionery operations, prompting speculation about the future of the 1,700 jobs at its Slough headquarters and factory. 24-Jan-2005 Nestle has confirmed plans to shed more than 50 jobs at its yoghurt factory in Northwich this year. 20-Jan-2005 Windward Bananas has won permission for the £3.5m expansion of the ripening facilities at its Little Canfield depot in Essex, which will eventually lead to the creation of 80 jobs. 20-Jan-2005 Wincanton is to close its chilled food depot in Milton Keynes this summer, with the loss of 352 jobs. 19-Jan-2005 Tate & Lyle is to close its remaining sugar storage facilities in Greenock and transfer the work to its site in Grangemouth. 19-Jan-2005 In Cup Plus is planning to raise £1m in a flotation on Aim to fund the commercial development of its wireless hot drinks vending machine. 18-Jan-2005 Warburtons has acquired the Rathbones bakery site in Stockton for undisclosed terms, and will spend the next nine months refurbishing the plant. 17-Jan-2005 Uniq is planning to shed up to 180 jobs at its salad factory in Spalding, following the loss of a £12m contract with Sainsbury. 17-Jan-2005 Richmond Foods has confirmed plans to close its ice cream factory in Ivybridge, Devon, this summer with the loss of 140 jobs, in order to transfer production to its three other plants. 14-Jan-2005 Dairy Crest is to close the Yoplait Dairy Crest own-label dairy desserts factory in Yeovil in June, with the loss of 260 jobs. 14-Jan-2005 Cannock Chase Council is set to approve plans from 3663 for the development of a new food distribution centre at Kingswood Lakeside park, with the creation of 143 jobs. 14-Jan-2005 Robert Wiseman Dairies is to close its Loanhead milk depot in Midlothian with the loss of up to 96 jobs, in order to transfer the work to its Whitburn depot in West Lothian. 13-Jan-2005 Northern Foods has started to recruit financial, administrative and secretarial staff for its new headquarters in Leeds, which will have a total workforce of about 80. 13-Jan-2005 Unilever is to sell the Birds Eye frozen food factory in Ladysmith Road, Grimsby, to Alpine Coldstores, which should help to secure some of the 600 jobs. 12-Jan-2005 Grants Foods is to expand its ready meals factory in Galston, and the workforce will rise from 30 to 50. 11-Jan-2005 Dungannon Meats is said to be planning to shed up to 200 jobs at its beef packing plant at the Granville Industrial Park in Dungannon. 11-Jan-2005 NWF Group has won planning permission to increase warehouse space at its site in Wardle, Cheshire, and has also won a contract to store and distribute products for Patak Foods. 10-Jan-2005 The information below comes from the UK Activity Report. 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