Nearly 400 jobs under threat at agricultural chemical maker

Nearly 400 jobs are under threat at an agricultural chemical maker.

Syngenta has announced plans to cease all operations at its Grangemouth site.

Bosses have blamed the move on its base remaining “significantly more expensive to operate than other production sites”.

Any closure would affect 377 staff.

The company – which makes crop protection products used by farmers globally – says it has entered formal consultation with trade unions and employees.

The move comes a little more than a year after Syngenta, owned by state Chinese firm Sinochem, was given more than £2 million in Scottish Enterprise funding to expand its base.

It also follows more than 400 workers losing their jobs amid the Grangemouth oil refinery closure last year.

Syngenta says it has undertaken a “detailed review” of its Grangemouth operations, but that savings identified would still “fall short in bridging the site’s competitiveness gap”.

Mike Hollands, Syngenta Crop Protection’s global head of production and supply, and president of Syngenta UK, said: “The workforce at Grangemouth is highly skilled and passionate but, despite all efforts, we have not been able to make the site competitive compared to alternative supply options.

“It is with a very heavy heart that we make this proposal, but we are committed to a constructive consultation and will continue to consider options as part of that process.”

Gillian Mackay, the Scottish Greens MSP for Central Scotland, said the proposed closure was “another devastating blow” for workers and the local community in Grangemouth.

She said: “Our Governments should be doing more to protect jobs and ensure workers can benefit from our transition to a greener future.”

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