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Mondelēz to invest $65m

19 Sep 2016

Mondelēz International is to make a $65 million investment to build a global Research, Development & Quality (RDQ) network which it believes will enable it to better recruit, retain and develop talent.

Mondelēz to invest $65m

Mondelēz International is to make a $65 million investment to build a global Research, Development & Quality (RDQ) network of the future. The investment will, the company said, enable it to better recruit, retain and develop talent across a range of science and technical disciplines while also creating a stronger presence in both emerging and developed markets. When complete, the redesigned network will consist of a combination of new and existing technical centres that will be more flexible and agile in responding to the company's growth and innovation needs.

Over the next two years, the company will focus its RDQ network at nine advantaged technical centres, concentrating people and resources into better equipped hubs. They will be located in Mexico City, Mexico; East Hanover, N.J., United States; Bournville, United Kingdom; Reading, United Kingdom; Wroclaw, Poland; Thane, India; Suzhou, China; Jurong, Singapore; and Curitiba, Brazil.

"With these advantaged technical centers, we're focusing our investment in research, equipment and capabilities to drive innovation to support our growth strategy and innovation, margin and quality platforms," said Rob Hargrove, Executive Vice President, RDQ. "These hubs will enable improved efficiency, effectiveness and accelerated project delivery, while the increased scale across key markets will provide rapid access to changing consumer needs and trends."

Three of the centres -- East Hanover, Bournville and Reading -- are already in full operation. The company will break ground on the Singapore facility in November 2016 and the Thane facility in December 2016 with the new Wroclaw building opening in 2017. The remainder of the redesigned network will open through 2018.