58 jobs hit as Müller Wiseman confirms depot closure
Distribution would gradually be transferred over the summer months from the Cornish facility to the Müller Wiseman Dairies depot in Bridgwater, Somerset, it said.
However, it reassured customers that supplies of fresh milk to Cornwall and Devon would be unaffected by the change and it confirmed it would have no impact on dairy farmers.
“Great credit is due to the team at Pensilva who have handled the situation the depot finds itself in professionally and remained focused on delivering an excellent service to our customers,” said Müller Wiseman Dairies md Carl Ravenhall.
‘Challenges facing this depot’
“The whole team, together with union representatives worked extremely hard to find ways of addressing the challenges facing this depot, but unfortunately we have been unable to establish an economic basis for continuing to distribute milk from Pensilva.
“Our priority is to support those who are affected by this decision and we will be working with local agencies to ensure that each individual has access to the services which are available.”
The decision, first seriously considered last month, was prompted by a substantial reduction in milk supplied from the depot to smaller stores and changes in customer requirements, the company said.
Large retailers
Large retailers were increasingly managing deliveries to their stores via their own regional distribution centres, it claimed.
In May, David Johnson, national officer for trades union Usdaw, said it was “deeply concerned at the situation” and would “examine the business case in detail”.
Müller UK & Ireland Group currently has 19 sites across the UK and employs 6,000 people across four business units.
In December 2013, Müller Wiseman Dairies formally opened a major butter-making plant in Shropshire, with the capacity to produce up to 45,000t of salted, unsalted and lactic butter annually.
