Tereos has signed a memorandum of understanding with Agristo to enable the development of a food processing activity on the site of its former sugar factory in Escaudœuvres, in the North of France.
On Aug. 28, in the presence of Roland Lescure, French Minister for Industry, Tereos and potato industrialist Agristo signed an agreement to launch a major project to reindustrialise the Escaudœuvres site.
The Belgian group Agristo is planning to set up a production unit for frozen potato products. 350 jobs will be created and €350 million invested, creating new outlets for local producers. The announced aim is to start production in the second half of 2027.
In a context marked by a significant fall in its cooperative members' sugarbeet surface acreage (down 20 percent in 5 years), Tereos was forced to announce the closure of sugar production activities at its Escaudœuvres site (59) in March. As soon as this announcement was made, the cooperative group did everything in its power to support its employees, to ensure that part of the site was not left abandoned and, with a view to revitalising the local industry, immediately launched an active search for an industrial partner.
After several months of research and discussions, the commitments made by the cooperative are now taking shape. An agreement has been reached for the social support of the sugar factory's employees, all of whom have been offered mobility solutions accompanied by strong support measures. Tereos has also confirmed that some 40 jobs (including 10 temporary positions) will be maintained at the site in its logistics and support activities, as well as part of its agricultural services. The "re-industrialisation" section, made official on August 28, confirms the future plans for this historic site in the Cambrésis region.
"It's good news for jobs, of course, but it's also good news for regional agriculture, which can see new long-term market opportunities opening up and agribusiness developing. We're delighted to see this tradition of agriculture winning continue. This is Tereos' objective," says Gérard Clay, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Tereos.
The project to re-industrialise the Escaudœuvres site, which will require the support of government departments to become a reality, will be divided into several phases. Between now and 2025, there will be a technical, administrative and industrial authorisation phase, which should be simplified because the project is part of a continuing agri-food business, a phase involving the dismantling of the existing plant and preparation of the site, which could begin in 2023, the start of construction in 2025 and a hoped-for production launch in 2027 (second half of the year).
With this agreement, Agristo and Tereos are writing a new chapter together for the Escaudœuvres site, a project that will bolster the region's economic future.
The Escaudœuvres site, which has a 150-year history of producing sugarbeets, will now be able to focus on potato production.
Tereos remains a major economic player in the Hauts-de-France region, with nine industrial and administrative sites employing more than 1,500 people. The cooperative will also play a major role in the Seine-Nord canal project via the multimodal platform at Nesle.
For more information, visit www.tereos.com.