Lactalis to shut another dairy plant in Romania

French dairy major Lactalis plans to close a factory in Romania acquired through the 2016 acquisition of Covalact.

The site earmarked for closure is located in Miercurea Ciuc, sitting in Harghita County in eastern Transylvania.

Around 95 staff will lose their jobs at the milk processing plant.

Lactalis said it is planning to invest at its four remaining Romania sites in Oiejdea, Sfantu Gheorghe, Campulung Moldovensec and Tunari.

“This new stage in organising our activity is part of Lactalis Group’s long-term strategy to consolidate investments and develop its businesses in Romania,” Onur Barim, the general manager of Lactalis’ business in Romania, said.

“We have invested over €60m in the last five years in Romania and, for the current year, we have planned investments of over €13m. These investments will allow us to be more competitive on the market and further diversify our product portfolios, for the final benefit of Romanian consumers.”

Lactalis acquired Covalact from US investment fund SigmaBleyzer, with reports at the time suggesting the deal was inked for around €40m ($42.8m today). Prior to that transaction, the company also snapped up Romanian dairy business Albalact.

Alongside Lactalis’ international brands such as President, Galbani, Leerdammer and Parmalat, the company also markets the LaDorna, Covalact and Bardezzi lines in Romania.

Just Food