First Minister Mark Drakeford has said the Welsh Government has "not given up" on saving hundreds of jobs at a Valleys food factory that plunged into administration this week. Some 250 staff at Tillery Valley Foods in Abertillery are to be made redundant after the company announced on Wednesday May 17 it was entering administration.
Stephen Bolton, Executive Chairman of Joubere Ltd, which owns the factory, said they were "heartbroken" to close the factory, citing £2 million in energy cost increases and inflation on ingredients and packaging as the decisive factors. He said the news was a "devastating blow for the town."
The closure is a major blow for the valleys which saw a hundred jobs lost at Garth Bakery in Abercynon in December and 60 jobs at risk at aerospace and defence company General Dynamics in Bryn Brithdir and Pentrebach.
