Business leaders in Birmingham are urging Kraft Foods to spell out their plans should their bid for Cadbury be successful.
Jerry Blackett, chief executive of Birmingham Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCI), is seeking clarification on several issues to ensure that Cadbury 鈥渃ontinues to make a positive contribution to our business life鈥.
Mr Blackett has written to Irene Rosenfeld, chairman and chief executive of Kraft pointing out that Cadbury is a great British success story.
He adds: 鈥淚t is crucial for Birmingham and the West Midlands that Cadbury continues to make a positive contribution to our business life, including maintaining levels of employment and investment in research and development.
鈥淲hilst it is easy to understand the manifold attractions of purchasing Cadbury PLC with its track record in growth and profits, a takeover that did not add value to the company and by extension to the West Midlands鈥 economy could destabilise its existing operations and current success.
鈥淎s such, I would like to ascertain from you what a successful Kraft Food Inc bid for Cadbury PLC would do to make the business even more compelling and competitive as well as understand more clearly your plans for its West Midlands鈥 operations.
鈥淚 am also keen to secure your assurances that you will seek to resolve Kraft Food Inc鈥檚 interest in Cadbury PLC as speedily as possible to avoid damaging uncertainty, which is all the more important given the poor global economic outlook.鈥
