Cadbury combines operations
West-end facility getting $10-million makeover for expansion
May 27, 2010
Steve Arnold
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/News/Business/article/776581
A west-end candy factory is getting a $10-million makeover.
Cadbury Adams is spending that money to combine its Hamilton and Stoney Creek operations into one efficient factory.
"We're going to bring two facilities together," explained Stephanie Minna Cass, the company's Canadian corporate communications manager. "This will allow us to reduce the complexity of our operation and to ship directly from our Hamilton plant."
Cadbury currently has a production plant on Ewen Road in Hamilton's west end and a leased packaging-shipping plant in Stoney Creek. The candies and other treats made in Hamilton have to be moved clear across the city to be packaged before they can be shipped to customers across Canada and the United States.
"By doing this we can reduce our complexity, reduce our emissions and improve our work flow," she said. "We'll be able to ship directly from Hamilton to our U.S. and Canadian warehouses."
Work on the project, which will increase the west-end plant from 175,000 square feet to 200,000, is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
Minna Cass explained the Hamilton plant has been pegged as a "centre of excellence" for candy production for Kraft in Canada -- Kraft won control of Cadbury's earlier this year.
The Hamilton plant produces Maynard's Fuzzy Peaches, Swedish Berries, Sour Patch Kids, Swedish Fish and Sour Cherry Blaster candies "and a plethora of other brands."
Where many corporate consolidation decisions often mean the loss of a factory and jobs, Minna Cass said Cadbury decided to stay in Hamilton "because we already had a significant manufacturing operation there."
"It's critical for us to remain competitive so we are continuously re-evaluating our processes and facilities," she said. "We already have significant space at Ewen Road so making better use of it gives us much better costs."
The company refused to say how many people are employed at the plants, but said the consolidation should be accomplished with "minimal to no job loss."
Neil Everson, Hamilton's director of economic development, welcomed the expansion as a first step toward building up the food processing industry in Hamilton -- one of the targets of the new economic development strategy.
"We've been working with Cadbury Adams for months," he said. "This is a very exciting development."
Cadbury started making candy in Canada in 1905. The Hamilton plant continues a tradition of local candy making that started in 1950 with the founding of Allan Candy Group.
It was purchased in 1995 by U.K.-based Cadbury Schweppes and rebranded Trebor Allan Inc. In 2007, Cadbury sold the Allan Candy business to ReichmannHauer Capital Partners which, in turn, sold the Emerald Street North manufacturing plant to a new company called Karma Candy Inc.