The decision not to join the single European currency will have a
negative effect on one of Sweden's biggest food companies, Arla
Foods, which has operations in the UK, Denmark and Sweden.
Construction of Arla Foods' new milk powder factory in Vimmerby,
Sweden began yesterday after months of delay. According to the
original timetable, work on the factory should have begun in April.
Two dairies, Danish-based Birkum Ost and UK-based Oakthorpe, have
been granted ISO 9001:2000 and HACCP accreditation. Both are owned
by dairy giant Arla Foods.
The European Agricultural Ministers' decision to reform the
European milk market last week has caused a degree of concern among
the continent's dairy producers.
The UK competition authorities have asked permission from the
European Commission to rule on the proposed merger of Arla Foods
and Express Dairies in the UK.
Dairy giant Arla Foods is planning to cut 600 jobs over the next
three financial years. The job losses will largely be contained
within the group's administrative departments.
Express Dairies, the UK's leading liquid milk supplier, and Arla
UK, the British arm of Europe's largest dairy co-op, are merging to
create a stronger position in both the liquid milk and dairy
spreads sectors.
Pressure on prices, unfavourable foreign exchange rates and a
decline in German sales mean that Scandinavian dairy company Arla
will have difficulty meeting its profit targets for 2003.
Scandinavian milk-based ingredient supplier Arla Foods announced
recently that it is to tackle the organic market with a new
publicity campaign. The campaign aims to increase the sales of
organic milk in Denmark and represents the...
Claims by Swedish dairy company Arla that its Rosenborg cheese is
the most popular blue cheese in Britain have caused offence to
Stilton producers, who argued successfully that their cheese is by
far the most widely sold UK brand.
Arla sets out its stall as the leading speciality cheese producer
in the UK with the acquisition of HT Webb for an undisclosed sum.
The Scandinavian company said the deal reinforced its commitment to
the UK market where it has already...
