Avara Foods, a joint venture between Cargill’s UK fresh poultry business and Faccenda, has proposed the closure of its Abergavenny site. The manufacturer cited significant inflationary pressure in fuel, commodities, and labor since the COVID-19 pandemic as major drivers behind its proposal. This resulted in increased pricing and significantly reduced demand for UK-produced turkey in the retail market.
Over the last six months, Avara has explored various options that would enable its wider business to compete effectively in the market in the future, including different potential uses for the Abergavenny site. However, this process revealed that volumes of production could be processed more efficiently on other operations with lower capital investment, leading to the proposal to close the site.
“This difficult decision has not been taken lightly and in no way reflects on the hard-working colleagues,” said a spokesman for the business. In the coming days, Avara will begin a collective consultation process with the individuals that are affected by this proposal. The nature of this consultation means that no final decisions have been made, and there will be no speculation as to how the process will conclude.
The Abergavenny site was acquired as part of Faccenda’s purchase of Turkey processor Cranberry Foods in 2012. News of the proposed closure of Avara Abergavenny comes just over one year since the manufacturer announced it had invested more than £4m in its processing sites in Hereford and Telford, following a previous £12m investment in automation earlier that same year.
It is worth noting that last week, meat processor Pilgrim’s UK proposed plans to close its Ashton-under-Lyne site, putting 542 roles at the risk of redundancy. “Unfortunate, essential to ensure a sustainable future for our team members across the UK,” said Vice-president of human resources Rachel Baldwin of the proposals.
As businesses continue to navigate the uncertainty amid the pandemic, Avara’s proposal serves as a reminder that tough decisions may need to be made to maintain sustainability.
