PRESS RELEASE

Livingston, 19th January 2009

VION Announces Re-structuring of its Abattoir and Cooked Meats Operations

VION Food Group Ltd plans to re-structure its Abattoir and Sliced Cooked Meats operations at its Malton and Haverhill pork processing plants.

Against a backdrop of a very competitive marketplace and over-capacity within the UK meat sector, VION has been conducting an extensive review of its UK operations.
VION plans to focus resources to create “centres of excellence” that will be better placed to meet the demands from the market and optimise production efficiencies.

The company is proposing to close its Abattoir, Butchery, and some elements of its Retail operations at its Haverhill site and to transfer these operations to VION Malton. At the same time, VION is proposing to transfer all cooked meats operations currently based at its Malton site to the Haverhill operation. This will allow the Haverhill business to focus on the production and processing of cooked meats, and the Malton plant to focus on the production of fresh pork and bacon.

As a consequence of this review and the proposed changes, there is the possibility of redundancies at both plants.

Commenting on this announcement, Alasdair Cox, Director of Corporate Affairs said “Due to increasingly competitive pressures from the marketplace, we must continually look to optimising our production facilities to ensure sound foundations for the development of our UK business. In creating dedicated facilities at Malton and Haverhill, we will also be investing in both plants to build the business.

We regret the need for these changes in our activities announced today and have informed our employees and their Union representatives of our commitment to consult with them. The commitment from the teams at Haverhill and Malton has never been in question.

The company will be consulting with the affected people and their nominated representatives to explore ways of avoiding redundancies, including transfers both within the site operations and to other businesses within the company.”

The company is in contact with Yorkshire Forward, in respect of Malton, and East of England Development Agency, in respect of Haverhill, to establish what support and assistance can be provided to both sites at this difficult time to safeguard jobs and grow the business in the future.

Theresa Lindsay, Assistant Business Director at Yorkshire Forward said “VION’s processing plant at Malton is vital to the local economy and Yorkshire Forward is working closely with VION in the re-structuring of the business to safeguard its future and ensure that the Yorkshire plant becomes a centre of excellence within the wider Group”

Richard Ellis, Chair of the East of England Development Agency said “The pig industry is an important part of the East of England economy with many jobs reliant on the Haverhill plant as part of the supply chain. The EEDA will be working with Suffolk County Council and St Edmundsbury Borough Council to maintain the processing plant in Haverhill and safeguard the majority of jobs dependant on it.”

VION N.V.
VION N.V. is an internationally operating food company that produces high-quality foodstuffs and ingredients for humans and animals. The group consists of four divisions: Ingredients, Fresh Meat, Convenience and VION UK. VION has an annual turnover of more than €9.5 billion and employs 35,000 people worldwide. VION is a non-listed company and has a single agricultural shareholder: the Zuidelijke Land- en tuinbouworganisatie ZLTO (Dutch Southern Agricultural and Horticultural Farmers Union) which has 18,000 members. VION's head office is located in Son en Breugel, the Netherlands.
VION Food Group Ltd produces and processes high quality beef, lamb, pork, bacon and chicken as well as a wide range of convenience products such as sausages, cooked meats and added value cooked chicken. The UK operation has extensive facilities across the UK from farms and hatcheries to primary production, processing and packing, and supplies products according to customer and market demands. The business is primarily focused on the UK retail market but also includes important foodservice and wholesale clients within its portfolio.

Note for the editors
For further information please contact:
Robert Smith, Group Communications Controller, VION Food Group Ltd
+44 (0)1506 400400
+44 (0)7785 502976
rob.smith@vionfood.co.uk

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About VION

PRESS RELEASE

VION Announces Re-structuring of its Abattoir and Cooked Meats Operations


	PRESS RELEASE Livingston, 19th January 2009 VION Announces Re-structuring of its Abattoir and Cooked Meats Operations VION Food Group Ltd plans to re-structure its Abattoir and Sliced Cooked Meats operations at its Malton and Haverhill pork processing plants. Against a backdrop of a very competitive marketplace and over-capacity within the UK meat sector, VION has been conducting an extensive review of its UK operations. VION plans to focus resources to create “centres of excellence” that will be better placed to meet the demands from the market and optimise production efficiencies. The company is proposing to close its Abattoir, Butchery, and some elements of its Retail operations at its Haverhill site and to transfer these operations to VION Malton. At the same time, VION is proposing to transfer all cooked meats operations currently based at its Malton site to the Haverhill operation. This will allow the Haverhill business to focus on the production and processing of cooked meats, and the Malton plant to focus on the production of fresh pork and bacon. As a consequence of this review and the proposed changes, there is the possibility of redundancies at both plants. Commenting on this announcement, Alasdair Cox, Director of Corporate Affairs said “Due to increasingly competitive pressures from the marketplace, we must continually look to optimising our production facilities to ensure sound foundations for the development of our UK business. In creating dedicated facilities at Malton and Haverhill, we will also be investing in both plants to build the business. We regret the need for these changes in our activities announced today and have informed our employees and their Union representatives of our commitment to consult with them. The commitment from the teams at Haverhill and Malton has never been in question. The company will be consulting with the affected people and their nominated representatives to explore ways of avoiding redundancies, including transfers both within the site operations and to other businesses within the company.” The company is in contact with Yorkshire Forward, in respect of Malton, and East of England Development Agency, in respect of Haverhill, to establish what support and assistance can be provided to both sites at this difficult time to safeguard jobs and grow the business in the future. Theresa Lindsay, Assistant Business Director at Yorkshire Forward said “VION’s processing plant at Malton is vital to the local economy and Yorkshire Forward is working closely with VION in the re-structuring of the business to safeguard its future and ensure that the Yorkshire plant becomes a centre of excellence within the wider Group” Richard Ellis, Chair of the East of England Development Agency said “The pig industry is an important part of the East of England economy with many jobs reliant on the Haverhill plant as part of the supply chain. The EEDA will be working with Suffolk County Council and St Edmundsbury Borough Council to maintain the processing plant in Haverhill and safeguard the majority of jobs dependant on it.” VION N.V. VION N.V. is an internationally operating food company that produces high-quality foodstuffs and ingredients for humans and animals. The group consists of four divisions: Ingredients, Fresh Meat, Convenience and VION UK. VION has an annual turnover of more than €9.5 billion and employs 35,000 people worldwide. VION is a non-listed company and has a single agricultural shareholder: the Zuidelijke Land- en tuinbouworganisatie ZLTO (Dutch Southern Agricultural and Horticultural Farmers Union) which has 18,000 members. VION's head office is located in Son en Breugel, the Netherlands. VION Food Group Ltd produces and processes high quality beef, lamb, pork, bacon and chicken as well as a wide range of convenience products such as sausages, cooked meats and added value cooked chicken. The UK operation has extensive facilities across the UK from farms and hatcheries to primary production, processing and packing, and supplies products according to customer and market demands. The business is primarily focused on the UK retail market but also includes important foodservice and wholesale clients within its portfolio. Note for the editors For further information please contact: Robert Smith, Group Communications Controller, VION Food Group Ltd +44 (0)1506 400400 +44 (0)7785 502976 rob.smith@vionfood.co.uk