Meat manufacturer backs Cornwall as 110 jobs threatened

Tulip Food Company is "fully committed" to Cornwall and its Redruth site, despite changes to shift patterns threatening up to 110 jobs there, according to managing director Jose Peralta.

Tulip Ltd, which is owned by Danish Crown, announced the news following an in-depth review of the business resulting in a move from a seven-day to a five-day operation.

"Redruth is our key bacon business within Tulip Food Company (UK), processing both Danish and, increasingly, premium British product," said Peralta.

Committed

"Tulip's leadership is fully committed to making this site the best bacon business in the country and unwavering in its commitment to Cornwall. The site has been going through a period of under-performance in an extremely competitive bacon market place. This has resulted in a comprehensive review of how we operate.

"During the consultation period we will work tirelessly to explore all options available to us in order to minimise the impact on people's jobs. I would like to reiterate that, despite this news today, Redruth and Cornwall remains very important for the future of Tulip and Danish Crown."

Peralta said Tulip Food Company was working with experts across the group and Danish Crown to ensure it produced the best quality products as efficiently as possible to give customers the best value.

Redundancy

Up to 110 of the 660 roles at the Redruth site have been identified as at risk of redundancy. The company has now entered into consultation with colleagues and their representatives.

In September 2016, Tulip Ltd. announced a restructure into four divisions: Tulip Fresh, Tulip Added Value (referred to as Tulip Food Company), Tulip Agriculture and Dalehead Foods. Each has its own leadership team, strategy and targets.

At the time, Steve Francis, newly appointed chief executive of Tulip Ltd, admitted the company needed to "regain its mojo", having "lost its edge" in the UK meat industry. The revelation of the restructure came as the company confirmed that it expected to post a financial loss in its full-year results, which are set to be published this summer.