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Bakery giant Goodman Fielder has announced it will close some of its sites and relocate operations to build a more sustainable business.

 

The restructure will involve the loss of more than 200 jobs, but the company said it planned to invest in selected sites as part of the announcement.

 

“Today’s announcements continue Goodman Fielder’s investment commitment across all of its markets with over $650 million planned between 2016-2019, of which approximately $200 million will be in Australia,” Goodman Fielder CEO Scott Weitemeyer said.

 

The changes will affect the company's operations in WA, QLD, NSW and the ACT.

 

In Malaga, Perth, Goodman Fielder has entered into a commercial supply agreement with a third party for the manufacture of its products and brands for the WA region, with manufacturing at its Malaga bakery expected to cease on 1 May.

 

The decision will affect around 75 employees.

 

In Queensland, Goodman Fielder plans to relocate production from its Carina bakery to its Burleigh Heads facility and relocate production of garlic bread from its Hemmant site to its Moorebank bakery in NSW.

 

The Carina and Hemmant bakeries are expected cease manufacturing through the second half of 2017, with around 140 production employees affected.

 

The consolidation of garlic bread production would also result in the transfer of Erskine Park garlic bread manufacturing to Moorebank.

 

Goodman Fielder's garlic bread products are not involved in this week's recall.

 

However, Goodman Fielder expects more than 60 new positions to be created at the Burleigh Heads, Moorebank and Canberra facilities to accommodate increased production capacity at these sites.

 

“Today’s announcement is part of our group-wide strategy to generate efficiencies across our baking network,” Julie Coates Goodman Fielder Australia MD said.

 

“We are consolidating our manufacturing network and investing in larger capacity sites to create a more sustainable business for the long term.

 

“We understand the impact these announcements have on our people and our immediate priority is to ensure that they are supported through this process,” said Coates.

 

“We remain committed to our customers and consumers in each of the impacted areas and our plans are focused on ensuring they continue to receive daily fresh deliveries from Goodman Fielder.

 

“The increased investment we are planning across a number of our sites will strengthen our baking business, providing a more competitive and sustainable platform for the future,” she said.

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