Premium Food Group to shut down its ham production facility in Ahlen, Germany
The meat processor Premium Food Group has began the process of winding down its Ahlen site in Germany. Majority of the 210 employees to be offered transfers to the Rheda-Wiedenbrück plant.
GERMANY – Premium Food Group (PFG), formerly operating under the Tönnies Holdings name, is in the process of closing its ham production plant in Ahlen, North Rhine-Westphalia.
The company, which introduced a new corporate identity earlier this year, intends to shift its ham operations to its central location in Rheda-Wiedenbrück by 1 June.
As part of the transition, PFG announced that the Rheda-Wiedenbrück facility will take over most of the ham processing work, while some portions will be redirected to its other site in Sögel, Lower Saxony.
According to the company, this realignment is designed to take advantage of operational efficiencies between the two locations, with a focus on positioning its ham-cutting division for long-term functionality.
Frank Böckenkötter, managing director of the Ahlen site, said that the facility has struggled with underuse and is no longer able to sustain full production levels.
He added that the decision to consolidate was unavoidable, citing operational limitations at the Ahlen location.
PFG stated that most of the roughly 210 employees at the site would be offered new roles at the Rheda plant, and that the workforce had been briefed about the decision earlier in the week.
Christian Nottbrock, one of the company’s managing directors, said the company was pleased to be in a position to extend employment offers to most staff but acknowledged the significant impact the changes would have.
He noted that the management team would work closely with affected employees throughout the transition.
PFG assured stakeholders that the closure of the Ahlen plant would not disrupt deliveries or interfere with existing relationships with suppliers or contract partners.
The closure will be carried out gradually, with machinery and other assets either being transferred to other company sites or sold off.
The company is still reviewing potential future uses for the site’s buildings.
This development follows a similar downsizing move in March last year, when the group shut down one of its export packaging departments for the Asian market, a step that affected around 140 workers.
PFG, which is family-owned and headquartered in Germany, currently employs over 15,000 people and supplies a broad range of food products to consumers globally.
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