British food manufacturer Premier Foods has renewed its global partnership with Mondelēz International, retaining the licence to produce Cadbury-branded cakes and desserts until at least 2022.
Premier Foods said that it had signed a ‘heads of terms agreement’ for the partnership, which is expected to unlock new growth opportunities beyond the core markets of the UK, Ireland, Australasia and the UAE. It will bring the total number of licensed countries to 46, including ‘exciting’ new markets like Canada, Japan, China, India and South Africa.
The licence also covers markets in the Caribbean, as well as additional countries in the Middle East. Premier Foods said that it was ‘already developing plans’ to launch Cadbury-branded cake in two significant markets in 2017 and 2018.
Its chief executive officer, Gavin Darby, said: “I’m delighted we’re entering into a new long-term global partnership with Mondelēz International, which will unlock exciting new growth opportunities for both partners.
“This will give us a great platform to invest in developing the Cadbury cake brand in the UK and around the world and represents a major boost to our fast-growing international business. The new global partnership is good news for our colleagues and good news for British exports.”
Glenn Caton, president of northern Europe for Mondelēz, added: “We are very proud of our long term partnership with Premier Foods and look forward to continuing to work together to nurture and develop our well-loved portfolio of brands and products. The future is bright for Cadbury cakes and for the people that love them.”
The partnership includes the possibility for Premier Foods to use the full range of Cadbury brands – including Flake, Crunchie, Caramel and Marvellous Creations – as well as the Oreo brand for its range of branded cakes. It said that the option would ‘open the door to further growth opportunities’.
Premier Foods’ range of Cadbury-branded cakes and desserts include a series of ‘choc tarts’ for various Cadbury chocolate brands, numerous different version of Cadbury Mini Rolls, tubs of Cadbury Amaze Bites, Cadbury desserts, and a duo of Cadbury ‘sticky puds’.
Although the licence ends in 2022, it includes an option to extend the agreement to 2025, building on Premier Foods’ 3o-year relationship with Mondelēz.
In recent years, Cadbury cakes have seen impressive growth in the UK and Australia and have also been launched in the UAE. Over 1 million Cadbury Mini Rolls are now being produced every day at Premier Foods manufacturing facility in Merseyside, which is expected to grow in the future.
© FoodBev Media Ltd 2024