Mondelez International is to bring the production of the Oreo biscuit brand to the UK.
The move comes as one element of an investment in its Sheffield production facility, which currently produces confectionery brands such as Trebor, Maynards and Bassetts. The confectionery and snack giant has invested £6 million in the creation of a new manufacturing line at the factory for the production of the famous black and white biscuit. Later in the year, the factory will also begin production of BelVita breakfast biscuits for UK, Irish and other European markets.
The company's new production line is capable of producing over a million Oreo biscuits in 24 hours and forms part of a wider £50 million investment in UK chocolate and biscuit manufacturing by the firm since 2010. Maurizio Brusadelli, president of Mondelez International UK and Ireland said, "We are delighted to officially open the new Oreo line at Sheffield which clearly signals the importance of the UK as a manufacturing base for us. This investment is a first step - we hope to follow it with further investment and innovation in biscuits."
Indeed, Mondelez's Oreo brand appears to be having an influence elsewhere in the British market - fifteen months after Mondelez twinned its heavyweight Cadbury and Philadelphia brands in a popular dairy spread, Tesco has launched its own chilled version into the marketplace. The spread, which is sold within its standard own-label range is set to retail at £1.30 for 200g, while Cadbury's version retails at around £1.75. Tesco's spread is produced by Arla Foods, which also supplies soft cheese into the exclusive to Tesco Yum range. Mondelez launched Philadelphia with Cadbury in January 2012, and has made £10.6m since its launch [Nielsen mid-February 2012 to 20 April 2013].
