Wispa relaunch revives Cadbury

Source: Food and Drink Digital

Date :12/12/2007 09:00:37

A successful relaunch of the Wispa chocolate bar has sweetened the fortunes of Cadbury Schweppes' UK business, the confectionery maker has said.

The October move - and a marketing campaign featuring a gorilla drumming to a Phil Collins track - helped the company recover its share in a "buoyant" UK market.

But Cadbury's forecasts of better-than-expected confectionery revenue growth angered trade union Unite, which is campaigning against the company's plans to axe 500 jobs with the closure its factory in Keynsham, near Bristol, under a cost-cutting drive.

Unite's regional official Lydia Hayes said staff at the factory were "working flat out".

She added: "This just shows that moving production to Poland is completely unnecessary. This is a very successful company who are getting far too greedy. They are showing contempt for their workforce at a time when they are delivering so much for them."

In June Cadbury unveiled plans to cut 7,800 jobs and close 15 percent of its factories worldwide.

Certain

Chief executive Todd Stitzer said he was confident the "efficiency initiatives" and the confectionery growth - above the 4-6 percent range previously indicated - would give the group momentum next year despite an uncertain economic outlook and higher raw materials costs, which will be passed on to customers.

In the UK, Bournville-based Cadbury sold more than 20 million Wispa bars when they returned to the shelves after a four-year absence.

The Dairy Milk maker has benefited from a cooler summer and said it had made a positive start to the Christmas season, with sales of chewing gum brands such as Trident also strong.

The recovery of the UK chocolate business comes after a salmonella outbreak last year, for which the firm was fined £1 million in July. A total of 42 people fell ill in the first half of last year after the outbreak at its factory in Marlbrook, Herefordshire.

December 12, 2007