Union to pursue protected name claim for HP Sauce

Representatives from the Transport & General Workers’ Union and Amicus are meeting Heinz bosses on Tuesday to try and glean more details about the company’s plant rationalisation plans.

Heinz employees were still waiting to hear which four European factories will be closed as part of a global cost cutting initiative announced in early June, said John Jordan, national secretary at the T&G’s food and drink division. “We want to find out what their plans are and how they will affect workers in Heinz factories.”

Heinz, which has just sold its Luton fresh prepared foods business and the Linda McCartney meat-free brand and Fakenham manufacturing site to Hain Celestial, recently sparked fury when it unveiled plans to close the Aston Cross HP Sauces plant and transfer production to a site in the Netherlands.

Despite strong opposition from MPs and trade unions, Heinz remained “hell bent on closing the place”, claimed Jordan. “We have a meeting with them on Monday July 17, but in the meantime, we’re looking at whether we could pursue a claim to get HP Sauce protected under the European Union protected names scheme. We don’t know whether we could meet the criteria, as the ingredients are not sourced locally and so on, but anything is worth a try.”

Heinz plans to close the Aston Cross site, which employs 125 staff, and transfer production to its plant in Elst in the Netherlands, which has spare capacity. Production will start switching from November, with the site finally closing its doors in March 2007.

The Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce bottling operation at Aston will be transferred to the HP manufacturing site in Worcester.