Haribo plans to open Leeds factory in 2013
The German giant, which turns over around £1.2bn worldwide and employs 478 people at its existing UK site in Pontefract, said it will take on 286 extra staff at the new facility in Leeds.
A spokeswoman said that Haribo was going through the due diligence process on the Normanton site purchase, with the deal believed to be worth £6m.
The company has received a grant from the government’s Regional Growth Fund towards the expansion.
Due diligence underway
A Haribo spokeswoman said: “We have an expected production start date of 2013, but we cannot give details until the due diligence process has been complete. It is all very top line at the moment.”
She explained that Haribo strategy was that it produced in the UK for the UK market, with no imports or exports. The new staff were required in addition to its existing workforce, she added.
Haribo is understood to be running out of space at Pontefract, Wakefield, after double-digit year-on-year sales growth for the past three years. It has been looking for a suitable area to expand nearby.
Royal growth
Haribo sweet company arrived in the UK in 1972 after buying a stake in Yorkshire company Dunhills, which it bought outright in 1994. The firm sells an average of around 250 million bags of sweets in the UK each year; last year’s sales were £114.8m.
Haribo currently has 16 factories around the world and its sweets are available in a total of more than 100 countries.
According to media reports, royal to be Kate Middleton is a big fan of Haribo, and the company has therefore launched a range of sweets called Hearts and Rings for the Royal Wedding, with sweets shaped like rings, hearts, wedding presents and cakes.
