Food and coffee manufacturer, Cerebos, is closing its south Auckland processing facility and moving its food production to Sydney.
According to the New Zealand arm of the company, Cerebos Gregg's, the plant will close on December 19 and result in the loss of 125 jobs.
Cerebos Australia and New Zealand is a trans-Tasman integration of two companies, Cerebos (Australia) Limited and Cerebos Gregg's New Zealand.
The company's Australian brands include Gravox, Saxa, Fountain, Mocopan, Asian Home Gourmet, Toby's Estate and Foster Clarks.
Cerebos Gregg’s CEO, Terry Svenson, said the ageing East Tamaki plant had become too costly and inefficient to run, so food production will shift to Seven Hills, Sydney and coffee production will move to its plant in Dunedin, NZ.
“This is a truly sad day for everyone involved,” Svenson said. “Our East Tamaki factory now needs major capital investment. But we can’t justify continuing to invest money in this ageing plant when we already have more modern manufacturing facilities capable of increased volumes.”
“To position ourselves for future growth we have to consolidate our manufacturing operations. Shifting our coffee and food production to our sites in Dunedin and Sydney is the only feasible option. We will remain a major manufacturer and employer in New Zealand,” Svenson said.
Cerebos Gregg’s country manager for New Zealand, Andre Gargiulo, said the changes were necessary, but the transition wouldn’t happen overnight.
“With the help and support we are providing, many affected workers may be able to move into new roles with other local employers.”
“The company will continue to consult with staff, and assist them through this challenging time,” he said.
Cerebos Gregg’s stressed it remained commited to New Zealand, noting it had recently invested millions of dollars into new plant installations and site development in its Dunedin plant.
The company is already one of New Zealand's largest coffee producers and its only instant coffee manufacturer. Dunedin will become the centre of coffee production in New Zealand and Sydney will be the trans-Tasman centre for food production.
Cerebos is owned by Singapore-based Suntory Beverage & Food Asia.
Cerebos, which owns brands like Gravox, will shift its NZ food production to Sydney at the end of the year.
