NEARLY 200 jobs are to go with the closure of a poultry processing factory at Bury St Edmunds.
NEARLY 200 jobs are to go with the closure of a poultry processing factory at Bury St Edmunds.
The Moy Park plant on Mildenhall Road is to close with production being transferred to a larger site in Lincolnshire.
A total of 188 people are employed at the Bury factory, and negotiations have started with them.
The company blamed the increasing price of wheat - crucial for poultry feed - for the decision to close the plant, together with the need to achieve better economies of scale at its larger factory.
A spokesman for the company said: “The Bury site came under Moy Park's ownership in 2004 and had the market been stronger for whole, locally reared chicken, then today's announcement might have been different.
“The main growth sector for chicken sales is swayed in favour more for portions than whole birds and, consequently, Moy Park has invested close to £30m in another far larger facility in Lincolnshire - said in 2007 to be the single largest such investment in the British food and agriculture sector for some years.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here