Premier Foods, Müller and retailers make GWBW

By Laurence Gibbons

- Last updated on GMT

Premier Foods, Müller Dairy, Iceland and Sainsbury all feature in negative news in the latest edition of our video news roundup Good Week, Bad Week.

Sainsbury and Iceland both reported a slump in sales as a result of food deflation and increasing competition, with Sainsbury’s sales falling 0.6% in the last quarter.

Iceland also blamed changing consumer habits for its 4.4% drop in sales to £2.69bn.

Jobs cuts

There was bad news for jobs at Müller Dairy, with the firm entering a 30-day consultation on 43 jobs at its Market Drayton factory in Shropshire.

During the week, Premier Foods boss Gavin Darby hailed its controversial pay-to-stay scheme a success for halving the number of the manufacturer’s suppliers. Offering little comfort for those delisted.

Premier Foods also reported sales up in both volume (9%) and value (3.3%) for the 52 weeks to April 4 2015. However, its trading profit was still down £8.9M on last year to £131M.

Positive news

There was positive news for jobs and investment from one manufacturer, as sauce firm BD Foods created 40 new roles and installed two new production lines thanks for a £240,000 loan from Lloyds Bank.

Morrisons reported it was slashing a third off 200 of its ‘everyday’ items as part of the troubled retailer’s boss David Potts’ plan to reverse its fortunes.

Meanwhile, in this week’s Good Week/ Bad Week we also un-package the pros and cons for food and drink businesses should the UK leave the EU​, according to the views of Farm Europe.

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