More than 400 jobs are to be axed at Sensodyne toothpaste and Advil painkillers firm Haleon as the group revealed plans to shut its only manufacturing site in the UK.
The consumer healthcare group, which was spun out of drugs giant GSK in 2022, is shutting its factory in Maidenhead, Berkshire, which will affect the 435 staff at the site.
It is aiming to close the operation on a phased basis over the next two years but stressed that the plans are being consulted on.
The factory makes some of the FTSE 100 listed firm’s toothpaste and mouthwash brands, such as Sensodyne and Parodontax.
Haleon, which employs nearly 2,000 staff in the UK, will transfer some of the production to its site in Slovakia.
The firm was formed in 2019 by the merger of the consumer healthcare businesses of British pharmaceutical group GSK and US rival Pfizer, sitting as a joint venture within GSK.
It was then spun out of GSK as a standalone business listed on the London Stock Exchange in July 2022.
GSK and Pfizer have since sold down their stakes in the company, with the pair owning 4.2% and about 24% respectively.