Mondelez to Invest $130 Million in U.S. Bakery Operations

EAST HANOVER, N.J.Mondelez International is investing more than $130 million on new manufacturing technology and capabilities at its Fair Lawn, N.J., and Richmond, Va., bakery operations to support priority cookie and cracker brands and product platforms. To enable the investment, the company will consolidate its current U.S. biscuit manufacturing footprint on the East Coast by closing its Philadelphia bakery by early 2015.

This investment in our North American biscuit supply chain offers us an exciting opportunity to further improve the overall effectiveness, efficiency and the competitiveness of our manufacturing network, with a focus on driving big bets and accelerating growth for the biscuit category," said Cindy Waggoner, vice president, North America Integrated Supply Chain, Biscuits. This announcement is also bittersweet.  It's always a difficult decision to close a manufacturing facility, especially one like the Philadelphia bakery, which has been part of our organization and the community for many years."

The Philadelphia bakery currently produces a limited number of core products. Other facilities are better positioned to support the company's future business needs. The closure will affect approximately 350 employees.

In December 2013, Mondelez International announced it would invest $190 million in India to establish the company's largest manufacturing plant in Asia Pacific. The 134-acre multi-category food campus in Sri City will have annual capacity of 250,000 tons and will be the largest chocolate manufacturing plant in India. The first phase of the project is expected to be completed by 2015.