Oatly Singapore’s plant closure results in layoff of 59 workers

Oatly, the Swedish oat milk firm, is closing its manufacturing plant in Singapore after evaluating its provide chain community within the area.

This was the corporate’s first manufacturing unit in Asia, serving the APAC area. With this closure, the area might be served as a substitute by Oatly’s Europe services.

Moreover, the corporate additionally has a manufacturing facility in China and a separate Larger China phase.

Oatly stated in its assertion that the transfer “aligns with the corporate’s asset-light supply-chain technique.” In response to the assertion, the closure is predicted to enhance Oatly’s future value construction and cut back the necessity for future capital expenditure.

Jean-Christophe Flatin, the CEO of Oatly, added that the closure of the manufacturing facility in Singapore will “assist to optimise the corporate’s manufacturing capability whereas being environment friendly with its capital and prices.”

Layoffs ensue

The closure will impression a complete of 59 staff, together with 34 Oatly workers.

The rest have been employed underneath the Singaporean beverage firm Yeo Hiap Seng (also called Yeo’s).

Yeo’s reported that the affected workers have been employed particularly to help Oatly’s manufacturing at Yeo’s Senoko plant, and the layoff is a direct results of Oatly’s analysis of its provide community.

“Yeo’s has made each effort to reassign as many as doable, and has efficiently positioned 16 workers in different roles inside Yeo’s,” the corporate stated in a press release, The Straits Occasions reported.

Sadly, 25 workers needed to be retrenched and can obtain severance packages primarily based on their wage and years of service.

The Singaporean beverage producer has partnered Oatly in Singapore since 2019. Regardless of the plant closure, it should proceed to help Oatly’s distribution in Singapore and Malaysia.

Apart from Oatly, there are different oat milk choices obtainable in Singapore, with essentially the most distinguished one being Oatside, a Singapore-based model backed by buyers like Temasek and Granite Asia.

With the closure, it could possibly be doable that Oatly’s costs in Singapore might fluctuate, maybe tipping the favour for manufacturers comparable to Oatside.