Potato producer CelaVita has been declared bankrupt, it was announced on Tuesday afternoon, August 12th. In June, it was already reported that the company had run into trouble after negotiations with the unions broke down. Sources close to the company confirmed this.
The company had been struggling for some time financial problemsCêlaVíta recently announced a reorganization, shifting its focus to the production of French fry products. A major setback caused a setback; the story goes that Albert Heijn, a major buyer for many years, decided to stop purchasing potato products. This loss weighed heavily on both sales and revenue, although these are unknown. Albert Heijn vehemently denies this, stating that the supermarket still purchases products. The supermarket chain regrets the bankruptcy and hopes to continue purchasing CêlaVíta products in the future.
Future uncertain
The future of the company is still unclear. The company was unavailable for comment Tuesday afternoon. A meeting with the administrator will be held soon to determine the next steps, according to local media. Until then, the more than 300 employees will not be required to work unless they are on-call. Meanwhile, work is underway to finalize and clear out ongoing operations. Whether there are plans for a restart is unknown. CêlaVíta was sold to investment firm Nimbus in March 2024 by McCain, but that investment has proven unsuccessful.
For the potato sector, CêlaVíta's bankruptcy is a major setback, especially now when the market is being plagued by surpluses. The Wezep-based company processes an estimated 120.000 tons of potatoes annually.