Confirmed: operations at Müller’s Aberdeen depot to end
The decision follows a 30-day review of the company’s depot operations in Aberdeen against a backdrop of declining consumption of fresh milk and significant changes in retailing.
The review concluded that with customers increasingly seeking deliveries of fresh milk products to large, centrally located retail distribution centres (RDCs) rather than directly to stores, the Aberdeen depot was no longer viable.
New jobs
The change would also result in the creation of 22 new jobs in central Scotland and where possible, affected employees would be offered the opportunity to relocate.
Ian Smith, chief executive of MMI Distribution, said: “We fully understand the impact of this decision on our colleagues in Aberdeen and we will do everything we can to support those who don’t want to relocate, or for whom there are no roles.
“Sadly, it is a reality that the distribution model for fresh milk has changed and if we’re going to operate a sustainable fresh milk business in the short and long term, benefitting the fresh milk sector as a whole, we must adapt.”
MMI announced the review of its distribution, garage, tanker and retail operations in Aberdeen during the middle of last month. The company's chief of ingredients Ian Smith said the consultation was part of the company's £100m Project Darwin transformation programme, designed to develop a sustainable future for the business.