Business

Brexit pushes European dairy giant to make cuts

20 of April 2018

FILE - In this Friday, Oct. 20, 2017 file photo, Baker Thierry Kubowicz cuts a part from a 25 kg piece of butter in a bakery in Versailles, west of Paris, France. A major European dairy cooperative says on Friday, April 20, 2018 "2 unexpected developments" - the currency impact of Brexit and the impact of the reversal in commodity prices on fat and protein - have forced them to a more than 400 million euro of savings over the next three years. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, file),FILE - In this Friday, Oct. 20, 2017 file photo, Baker Thierry Kubowicz cuts a part from a 25 kg piece of butter in a bakery in Versailles, west of Paris, France. A major European dairy cooperative says on Friday, April 20, 2018 "2 unexpected developments" - the currency impact of Brexit and the impact of the reversal in commodity prices on fat and protein - have forced them to a more than 400 million euro of savings over the next three years. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, file)

A major European dairy cooperative says "2 unexpected developments" _ the currency impact of Brexit and the impact of the reversal in commodity prices on fat and protein _ have forced them to a more than 400 million euro of savings over the next three years. Denmark-based Arla Foods says "as a responsible business we have to act."

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — A major European dairy cooperative says that currency swings caused by Brexit are among the reasons it has to cut costs by over 400 million euros ($495 million) over the next three years.

Denmark-based Arla Foods, the maker of Lurpak butter, says “two unexpected developments” — the pound’s drop after Brexit and a shift in commodity prices — are forcing it to act.

CEO Peder Tuborgh says the savings program is “to the benefit of its farmer-owners and further strengthen the company’s investment capability.”

Tuborgh said savings include changing work routines, trimming bureaucracy and cutting costs.

The cooperative is owned by farmers in Denmark, Sweden, Britain, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. It employs some 19,000 people.