Azul Airlines Wins Court Approval for $2 Billion Debt Restructuring and New Capital Raise 
SpaceX Begins IPO Preparations as Wall Street Banks Line Up for Advisory Roles 
Coca-Cola’s Proposed Sale of Costa Coffee Faces Uncertainty Amid Price Dispute 
Trello Outage Disrupts Users as Access Issues Hit Atlassian’s Work Management Platform 
Coca-Cola’s Costa Coffee Sale Faces Uncertainty as Talks With TDR Capital Hit Snag 
Nomura Expands Alternative Assets Strategy With Focus on Private Debt Acquisitions 
Strategy Retains Nasdaq 100 Spot Amid Growing Scrutiny of Bitcoin Treasury Model 
EU Signals Major Shift on 2035 Combustion Engine Ban Amid Auto Industry Pressure 
Fortescue Expands Copper Portfolio With Full Takeover of Alta Copper 
FDA Says No Black Box Warning Planned for COVID-19 Vaccines Despite Safety Debate 
United Airlines Tokyo-Bound Flight Returns to Dulles After Engine Failure 
Air Force One Delivery Delayed to 2028 as Boeing Faces Rising Costs 
HSBC’s $13.6 Billion Take-Private Offer for Hang Seng Bank Gains Board Backing 
Trump Sues BBC for Defamation Over Edited Capitol Riot Speech Clip 
SpaceX Insider Share Sale Values Company Near $800 Billion Amid IPO Speculation 
FAA Unveils Flight Plan 2026 to Strengthen Aviation Safety and Workforce Development 
Nvidia Weighs Expanding H200 AI Chip Production as China Demand Surges 
Nestle food company announced this week that it will shut down its infant formula manufacturing plant in Ireland as the demand sharply declined. The closure will result in the loss of jobs for about 542 workers.
In particular, Nestle mentioned the lower demand for baby’s milk formula in China due to low birth rates. This situation forced the Swiss food company to reconsider its production.
Wyeth Nutrition Plant Imminent Shutdown
The Irish Times reported that the company made an announcement on Wednesday, Oct. 18, confirming the closure of its Wyeth Nutrition facility in Askeaton, Co Limerick. The firm said it will stop the operations here in the first quarter of 2026.
A research and development (R&D) facility also sits on the site alongside its manufacturing plant, and this was only established four years ago. Unfortunately, this will also be affected, and 51 employees are set to lose their jobs here. At the factory, 491 people would soon be jobless as well.
Wyeth Nutritionals Ireland Ltd. mainly produces infant formula products that are exclusively exported to Greater China and Asian markets. Nestle acquired the Limerick factory in 2012 as part of its $11.85 billion buyout deal with Pfizer Nutrition.
Low Birth Rate in China
According to BBC News, Nestlé explained that the very low birth rate in China affected its profits since the demand is very low, and unfortunately, the firm has to halt production.
Babies born in the country were only half of the number of the usual rate in the past seven years. The country also decided to build its own infant formula market, and this further lowered the demand for imported milk.
“Today, we are announcing a proposal to cease operations in our Wyeth Nutrition infant formula factory in Askeaton, Co Limerick, Ireland by Q1 2026,” Nestle UK and Ireland stated in a press release. Regrettably, today’s announcement means approximately 542 colleagues will be placed at risk of redundancy. To adapt to those changes we are proposing to transfer the production from Askeaton to two existing factories – Suzhou, Mainland China and Konolfingen, Switzerland.”
Photo by: Lucy Wolski/Unsplash
