Inflation: the food group Cofigeo will temporarily stop 80% of its production

Europe 1 with AFP 12:44 p.m., January 2, 2023

The agri-food group Cofigeo (William Saurin, Garbit, Raynal) will temporarily stop production on four of its eight sites in France from January 2, 2023 in the face of rising energy prices, its manager told AFP on Tuesday. President Mathieu Thomazeau.

"Dealing with the dramatic rise in energy costs"

This represents 80% of its production and will have an impact on 800 of the group's more than 1,200 employees who will be subject to a long-term partial activity agreement (APLD), he said.

"The objective is for it to last as short a time as possible" but "we can no longer suffer waves of inflation which end up overwhelming us", declared Mr. Thomazeau.

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These measures were taken to "deal with the spectacular rise in energy costs (gas and electricity necessary for cooking and sterilizing ready meals), which will be multiplied by 10 from the start of the year", specifies in a press release the group, which manufactures prepared meals (William Saurin, Garbit, Raynal and Roquelaure, Zapetti...).

Added to this is the inflation of "food and industrial raw materials" used by Cofigeo, in particular beef, pork, tomatoes but also packaging and transport, the group further explains.

800 employees on technical unemployment

From January 2, 2023, the group "will be forced to stop production at its four main industrial sites and will thus implement the long-term partial activity agreement (APLD) signed with the representative unions to protect the 1,200 jobs and the sustainability of the Group's activities", according to the same source.

The sites concerned are Pouilly-sur-Serre (02), Lagny-sur-Marne (77), Capdenac (12) and Camaret-sur-Aigues (84).