SCHIPHOL AIRPORT, Netherlands, July 4, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- Royal Numico N.V. announces that it has now successfully closed all of the eight plants that formed part of the company's Baby Food manufacturing rationalisation plan in Europe. Numico has successfully closed the last two plants that formed part of project Focus, the plan to optimise the company's Baby Food manufacturing base in Europe. The plant in Friedrichsdorf (Germany) was closed in May, followed by the plant in Wells (UK) which was closed last week. All of the plant closures have been executed according to plan without any form of disruption and within the envisaged time table. The majority of related employees have already found alternative forms of employment.
The closure of these two plants will result in an incremental (one-off) cost of EUR 2.5 million in the second quarter of 2005 compared to the first quarter of 2005.
Project Focus is aimed at the optimisation and simplification of the company's Baby Food manufacturing platform in Europe. The project was launched in July 2003 and will generate cumulative annualised cost savings of EUR 35 million in 2006.
Royal Numico is a high-growth, high-margin specialised nutrition company with leading positions in Baby Food and Clinical Nutrition and brings products to the market under the brand names Nutricia, Milupa and Cow & Gate, among others. The company serves customers in over 100 countries and employs approximately 11,000 people (see also: www.numico.com).
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Royal Numico N.V. Corporate Communications tel. +31 20 456 9077 Royal Numico N.V. Investor Relations tel. +31 20 456 9003