UK job concerns following Heinz and Kraft merger
H.J. Heinz Company and Kraft Foods Group have entered into a definitive merger agreement to create The Kraft Heinz Company, forming the third largest food and beverage company in north America and the fifth largest in the world.
The combination of these iconic food companies joins together two portfolios of well known brands and means the new company will have eight $1 billion plus brands and five brands between $500 million and $1 billion.
On announcing the merger, both Heinz and Kraft referred to international markets as well as American. Alex Behring, chairman of Heinz, says, “By bringing together these two iconic companies through this transaction, we are creating a strong platform for both US and international growth. Our combined brands and businesses mean increased scale and relevance both in the US and internationally.”
However, Unite, the UK’s largest union, is seeking reassurances about future UK job security amid worries that such deals tend to involve job losses and cost cutting exercises.
Unite national officer for the food sector, Julia Long, says, “We will be seeking urgent meetings with Heinz management about the future security of our members’ jobs. We also want to know what the combined company’s future business plan will be for its sites in the UK.
“We and our trade union colleagues in the food industry around the world know from experience that deals like this often involve job losses and ruthless cost cutting, as global capital wants a quick return on its investment.
“News of this merger is a bolt from the blue for our members at Heinz. They deserve better and we will be fighting for a better deal for them.”
Unite has more than 1,000 members at the Heinz site at Kitt Green, Wigan, which is Europe’s biggest food factory manufacturing over one billion cans of beans, soup and other products each year, as well as members at other UK and Irish Republic sites.