250 staff laid off as Global Cake Company closes Bridlington factory
The Global Cake Company has closed down its Bridlington factory after attempts to sell the frozen cake plant as a going concern ended in failure.
All of the staff at the factory, which employs about 250 people, have been laid off.
An assets-only sale has now been agreed with an undisclosed third party.
A company spokesman said every effort would be made to help staff find alternative employment. He added: "We have invested considerable amounts in the plant over the last two years, but have been affected significantly by very difficult trading conditions."
The closure was widely anticipated in the trade after Global Cake's parent company, Schwan's Consumer Brands, recently announced that it was conducting a strategic review of its subsidiary’s activities.
The company's problems were blamed on an alleged 6% decline in 2005 in the frozen desserts category in which Global Cake operates.
The Global Cake Company was acquired by Schwan’s following the collapse of Hibernia Foods in 2003. Hibernia’s licence to make cakes on behalf of US company Sara Lee passed to Country Style Foods.
