FrieslandCampina closes 2 milk powder factories

FrieslandCampina will stop milk powder production at 2 locations in Friesland. The factories in Dronrijp and Gerkesklooster will be (partially) closed. The plans are part of a major cutback that the dairy cooperative is implementing.

In Gerkesklooster, milk powder production will be stopped from mid-January. Cheese production will continue there. The whey and powder tower did not operate on a structural basis, but was used if there were malfunctions elsewhere. The curtain will finally fall from April 2022 for the location in Dronrijp, where the 'Ingriedients' division produces children's, medical and sports nutrition. 

FrieslandCampina's intention is to house the milk powder production within its own factory network. FrieslandCampina believes it can anticipate future developments in the milk powder market by scaling down production capacity. The announced plans mean that 57 jobs will be lost.

Reorganization 
These are part of the layoff round in which about 1.000 people lose their jobs. The announced production closures are the second in a short time. Earlier this year, FrieslandCampina announced that it was closing the cheese factory in Rijkevoort. FrieslandCampina is going to remediate jobs not only in the Netherlands, but also in Germany and Belgium. The intention is to boost profitability, which is under considerable pressure, partly due to the corona crisis.

Wouter Job

Wouter Baan is editor-in-chief of Boerenbusiness. He also focuses on dairy, pig and meat markets. He also follows (business) developments within agribusiness and interviews CEOs and policymakers.

w.baan@boerenbusiness. Nl

© DCA Market Intelligence. This market information is subject to copyright. It is not permitted to reproduce, distribute, disseminate or make the content available to third parties for compensation, in any form, without the express written permission of DCA Market Intelligence.