Belgium: Jacobs Douwe Egberts to close Senseo factory

Jacobs Douwe Egberts (JDE), the world's leading ‘pure play’ coffee firm, is to shut its Senseo facility in Grimbergen, Belgium with the possible loss of 274 jobs, according to a report in Levensmiddelenkrant.

The factory, located in the Flemish half of the country, predominantly manufactures coffee pods, a category that is reported to have lost market share over recent years as the popularity of capsule formats has increased.

"It is with much regret that we have to announce our intention to close this facility", commented Jacobs Douwe Egberts operations director Luc Volatier in a press release. "Since opening in 1973, our plant in Grimbergen has played an important role in delivering our coffee business in Western Europe. While we appreciate and acknowledge the hard work of our Belgian employees, we believe this is a necessary step to strengthen our future business in the region".

Production at the site is expected to come to an end in early 2017.

Source: Levensmiddelenkrant