Haleon closes British production site with more than 400 job losses
- The Maidenhead site currently produces both Sensodyne and Parodontax products
- Oral health accounts for approximately one-third of Haleon’s total sales
The world’s largest standalone consumer healthcare company Haleon will close its UK manufacturing site as part of a cost-cutting drive that will result in the loss of hundreds of jobs.
All around 436 jobs will be lost by 2026 due to the closure of the Maidenhead site, which makes oral health brands including Sensodyne toothpaste, a spokesperson confirmed to Reuters news agency.
In efforts to reduce debt since being spun off from GSK in 2022, Haleon is undertaking a £300m-a-year cost-cutting programme.
It has also refocused its portfolio, removing brands such as Lamisil for fungal nail infections and Chapstick for sore lips.
Haleon products include Sensodyne toothpaste and painkiller Panadol
Haleon’s spokesperson said the phased closure of the Maidenhead site, expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2026, is part of the company’s efforts to become a more ‘flexible’ organization without the growing endangering the supply chain.
They added: ‘Following a strategic review of our global manufacturing capabilities, we have determined that our Maidenhead site is no longer a viable option for the production of our products.’
Oral health accounts for approximately one-third of Haleon’s total sales. The closure of the Maidenhead factory will see toothpaste production moved to the company’s base in Levice, Slovakia.
Mouthwash production will be moved to a third-party contract manufacturer, details of which have yet to be announced.
The spokesperson added: ‘Haleon continues to have a substantial presence in Britain as a UK-listed company.
‘We are investing more than £130 million in a new, state-of-the-art, globally significant oral health R&D facility in Weybridge.’
Haleon Stocks rose 1.84 percent to 337.40p in afternoon trading on Tuesday.