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Dr. Oetker Professional to focus on core segments in future

The food manufacturer is reacting to changing demands in out-of-home-market. / Production at the Ettlingen site is to be discontinued.

Dr. Oetker Professional to focus on core segments in future

17.1.2022 Corporate News

Ettlingen, January 17, 2022: Dr. Oetker Professional, the division of Dr. August Oetker Nahrungsmittel KG that exclusively serves the needs of the bulk consumer business, will realign its portfolio due to changing customer expectations in the out-of-home market. While high-quality products in the pizza, baking and dessert segments are enjoying increasing popularity, demand for dry, spicy products has been declining for years. Dr. Oetker Professional will therefore continue to focus on the product lines of pizza, baking and dessert. Production site in Ettlingen is to be discontinued. A streamlined range of products previously produced in Ettlingen will therefore be manufactured at other sites in future. For the approximately 190 employees affected by the restructuring, the company will negotiate a reconciliation of interests with the works council. In the long term, about 50 jobs will remain in the areas of marketing, sales and administration.

Demand in the out-of-home market for dry, spicy products has been declining for years. The Corona pandemic has exacerbated this development. The declining utilisation of production at the Ettlingen plant has led to losses since 2016. The markets for pizza, baking and dessert – Dr. Oetker's strategic assortmens – are showing positive developments in the out-of-home business. Accordingly, Dr. Oetker Professional division will focus on sales of these lines in the future.

Dr. Oetker Professional will increasingly develop into a solution provider for holistic service solutions.The company currently expects strong growth especially in the area of pizza with the ranges of snacks, sheet pizza and round pizzas, already introduced exclusively in the out-of-home market. Further innovations will follow. The introduction of Pizza Perfettissima, an Italian stone-baked pizza with a hand-made look, has already been a considerable success since 2020.

Axel Zinke, Member of the Management Board of Dr. Oetker Germany, comments on the decision: "I very much regret the developments of recent years. Dr. Oetker Professional is a great team with excellently qualified and committed employees. It is particularly painful to take restructuring measures in this environment. Against the background of the market changes, however, they are unavoidable in order to secure the long-term future of Dr. Oetker Professional.

Dr. Jörg Schillinger

Head of Department & Media Spokesperson Group Communication