When two years ago, Cadbury Schweppes said it is building its chewing gum plant in Skarbimierz near Wroclaw for EUR 100m, the project was announced as one of the biggest investments in food industry in Poland. When one year ago, the company started building the plant, its representatives mentioned that further development was possible. But few people might expect how big investment they meant.
“Cadbury considers building a sweet plant worth EUR 270m. It also wants to have an R&D center here. The project is at initial stage. Poland competes with Slovakia”, “PB” source revealed.
Government officials do not confirm the news although they have nothing against it.
“Repeated projects confirm that Poland is a good place for investors. We will surely support such projects”, Wojciech Szelagowski, deputy CEO at the Polish investment agency PAIIZ said.
The news show recent events at Cadbury in totally new light. In June, the world’s biggest confectionary producer said it would fire 7,500 people till 2011. Speculations spread that Wedel brand would be sold in Poland, accompanied by the decision to change the Polish CEO – Peter Knauer will stay at the term only till the end of the year. The newest plans seem to contradict the rumors. One must bear in mind that Cadbury may finance expansion in Asia and Europe with the funds raised in selling its US beverage unit.
Poland’s advantage is the fact that Cadbury is satisfied with its factory in Skarbimerz to be operational in 2008. Cadbury has a plant in Bielany Wroclawskie and chocolate plant in Warsaw. Another advantage, as people engaged in negotiations say, is Cadbury Wedel CEO – Peter Knauer. It is him who fights for moving possibly big part of Cadbury production to Poland. It is for his company that Piotr Wozniak, minister of economy, found time to come to official launch of construction works over the new plant, an extraordinary event as usually Mr. Wozniak’s deputies do this.