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How the cookie crumbles: United Biscuits (Part II)

Part I of this history of United Biscuits.

United Biscuits produces McVitie’s Digestives, Jaffa Cakes, Jacob’s cream crackers and Carr’s water biscuits.

United Biscuits is formed and becomes the largest biscuit manufacturer in Britain
Two Scottish biscuit manufacturers, McVitie & Price and Macfarlane Lang merged in 1948 to form United Biscuits, with a capital of £3.5 million. The businesses continued to trade under their respective names.

The Harlesden, North London, facility became the first fully-automated biscuit factory in the world in 1948, increasing output by 1000 percent.

United Biscuits produced 384 biscuit varieties in 1955. In order to cut costs, this had been streamlined to around 30 high-selling product lines by 1965.

United Biscuits held nearly 70 percent of the digestive biscuit market by 1959. It was also a leader in the sale of Rich Tea biscuits.

United Biscuits was the largest biscuit manufacturer in Britain by 1962.

William Crawford & Sons, the largest privately-owned biscuit manufacturer in the United Kingdom, was acquired in 1962 in a mostly share-based transaction which valued the company at £5.9 million.

United Biscuits increased its capital from £9 million to £13 million in 1963.

Hector Laing drives growth at United Biscuits
Hector Laing (1923 -2010) became managing director of United Biscuits from 1964. He would oversee a period of continued growth at the company.

United Biscuits entered the packaged cake market in 1964. The company had taken a 14 percent share of the market by 1968, winning market share from J Lyons.

United Biscuits held around 30 percent of the British biscuit market by 1965. The Harlesden site was probably the largest and best-equipped biscuit and cake factory in Europe by the mid-1960s.

William Macdonald & Sons of Glasgow was subject to a friendly takeover for £2.8 million in cash and shares in 1965. The firm had introduced the Penguin chocolate-coated biscuit in 1932. It was experiencing strong growth, and held almost 20 percent of British chocolate biscuit exports.

The United Biscuits subsidiaries were absorbed into a single operating company in 1965. This lowered costs, and increased competitivity.

The company announced plans to close four of its nine factories, and to greatly increase production at Glasgow and Liverpool in 1966.

The McVitie & Price factory in Edinburgh was closed in 1967 with the loss of 541 jobs. The Macdonald factory at North Cardonald, Glasgow was closed with the loss of 497 jobs. The Crawford factory in Leith was closed in 1970 with the loss of 703 jobs, and the Macdonald factory at Hillington, Glasgow was closed with the loss of 497 jobs. The factories that were closed had no room for expansion, and it made economic sense to rationalise production at a smaller number of larger sites.

The Macfarlane Lang factory at Tollcross, Glasgow was doubled in size at a cost of £2.3 million in 1969. The labour force was increased from 250 to 1,350. The factory would supply the Scotland, Northern Ireland and North of England markets.

The Crawford factory at Liverpool increased capacity by 50 percent following a £2 million investment in the 1970.

Sales of the McVitie’s brand doubled between 1962 and 1967. The McVitie’s Chocolate Homewheat (a chocolate digestive) was the highest-selling biscuit in Britain.

Meredith & Drew was acquired in 1967. Following the acquisition, United Biscuits produced over one third of all biscuits consumed in Britain.

Kenyon, Son & Craven, with the KP salted peanuts brand, was acquired in 1968 in a share exchange which valued the private company at £3.5 million.

United Biscuits was the largest biscuit manufacturing company in Europe by 1969.

Hector Laing was appointed company chairman from 1972. That year, United Biscuits took over the biscuit interests of Cavenham, which included Carr’s of Carlisle and Wright’s of South Shields, for £4 million in cash.

The South Shields factory was closed with the loss of 823 jobs in 1973.

A total of four factories and four offices were closed in the early 1970s in a spate of rationalisation. The McVitie, Crawford and Macfarlane sales teams were merged in the early 1970s.

United Biscuits acquired Keebler, the second largest biscuit manufacturer in the United States, for £23 million ($55 million) in 1974.

United Biscuits employed 36,000 people in 1976. Its products were sold in 92 countries. The company controlled 41.6 percent of the British biscuit market, and boasted eight out of the ten highest selling products.

Not every venture was a success however, and United Biscuits was prepared to admit defeat when appropriate; the company withdrew from the packaged cakes market in 1977.

United Biscuits sold 75 million biscuits every day by 1978.

The former Macfarlane Lang factory at Osterley, West London, was closed with the loss of 2,000 jobs in 1980.

The Hobnob biscuit was introduced from 1985.

Hector Laing retired as company chairman in 1990.

Recent history
After initial success, United Biscuits began to struggle in the United States, amidst strong competition from larger rivals Nabisco, as well as lower-cost supermarket own-label products. Keebler was sold to Flowers Industries, a breadmaker, for $500 million in 1995.

United Biscuits employed 22,500 people in 22 countries in 1999.

Jacob’s, a Liverpool biscuit manufacturer, was acquired from Danone of France for £200 million in 2004.

United Biscuits was acquired by private equity firms Blackstone and PAI Partners for £1.6 billion in 2006.

The snacks division of United Biscuits, including Hula Hoops crisps and KP nuts, was sold to Intersnack of Germany, manufacturer of Pom-Bear crisps and Penn State pretzels, for £504 million in 2012.

United Biscuits was sold to Yildiz Holding of Istanbul for over £2 billion to create the third largest biscuit manufacturer in the world, behind Mondelez and Kellogg, in 2013.

United Biscuits rebranded all of its sweet biscuits under the McVitie’s name, and all of its savoury biscuits under the Jacob’s name from 2014. McVitie’s gained the Club, Fig Rolls, BN and Iced Gems products from Jacob’s, whilst Jacob’s gained the Cheddars snacks products. The Crawford’s name was repositioned as a value brand, and products such as Family Circle were rebranded as McVitie’s.

The Harlesden site remains the largest biscuit factory in Europe as of 2017. The facility employs 580 workers. 22 different lines are produced, including Digestives, Hob Nobs and Mini Cheddars.

The Macfarlane Lang factory in Glasgow is set to close in 2022 with the loss of 472 jobs.

How the cookie crumbles: United Biscuits (Part I)

United Biscuits produces McVitie’s Digestives, Jaffa Cakes, Jacob’s cream crackers and Carr’s water biscuits.

Macfarlane Lang
James Lang established a bakery business at Gallowgate, Glasgow from 1817. His products included Scotch bread and shortbread.

John Macfarlane (1824 – 1908), nephew to John Lang, joined the firm from 1841 and the business traded as Macfarlane Lang. An energetic and progressive manager, Macfarlane eventually assumed control of the business.

John Macfarlane was a pioneer in the introduction of machine-made bread to Scotland.

John’s son, James Macfarlane (1857 – 1944), joined Macfarlane Lang & Co in 1878. He was joined by his two brothers, George William Macfarlane (1865 – 1938) and John Lang Macfarlane (died 1912).

A large new factory, the Victoria Works, was established in Glasgow in 1880.

Macfarlane Lang began to manufacture biscuits from 1885.

Sales expanded in the South of England, and a London factory was established on the banks of the River Thames on Townmead Road, Fulham from 1903.

Macfarlane Lang became a limited liability company from 1904, but remained a family business.

James Macfarlane became chairman from 1908.

Macfarlane Lang succeeded due to a strong commitment to quality and a wide variety of biscuits. The company supplied Osborne biscuits to the King by 1909.

John Lang Macfarlane died in 1912 with a personal estate valued at £284,563.

Macfarlane Lang was one of the largest manufacturers of biscuits in Britain by 1914. The factory in Glasgow covered four acres, and the Fulham site covered five acres, employing a total of 2,500 workers. Success was based upon high quality which stemmed from experienced management, skilled labour and strong investment in machinery.

After numerous extensions, the Fulham site lacked space for further expansion, and London production was relocated to a sixty-acre site at Osterley, West London, from around 1932. The new plant was one of the most modern biscuit factories in the world.

George William Macfarlane, deputy chairman of Macfarlane Lang, died in 1938 with a personal estate valued at £415,479.

Macfarlane Lang held a market share of eight percent by volume in 1939.

Sir James Macfarlane died in 1944, and left a personal estate of £172,180.

McVitie & Price
Robert McVitie (1809 – 1883) was advertising himself as a baker and confectioner in Edinburgh by 1856. He was a master baker employing six men, four boys and three women by 1871.

The firm was inherited by his son, Robert McVitie (1845 – 1910) in 1883. Charles Edward Price (1857 – 1934), a former salesman for Cadbury, joined him in partnership in 1888 to form McVitie & Price.

McVitie & Price began to produce their version of the digestive biscuit from 1892. The firm did not invent the digestive, but it is generally agreed that they did produce an improved version.

The works covered nearly three acres and employed around 300 people by 1894.

The firm ranked among the second tier of British biscuit manufacturers by 1899, behind Huntley & Palmers and Peek Frean, but alongside Carr & Co.

McVitie & Price established a factory at Harlesden, London in 1901. Price retired in 1901, and Alexander Grant (1864 – 1937) was appointed general manager.

McVitie & Price supplied their digestive biscuits to the Royal Household and the Houses of Parliament by 1908.

Robert McVitie died in 1910 with personal estate valued at £227,454. He died childless, and Alexander Grant became chairman and managing director of McVitie & Price.

McVitie & Price introduced the Jaffa Cake in 1927.

By 1936 McVitie & Price was one of the largest biscuit manufacturing firms in the world, with nearly 2,000 people employed at Harlesden, and more employed at factories in Edinburgh and Manchester.

McVitie & Price was the fifth largest biscuit manufacturer in Britain by 1939, with a market share by volume of ten percent.

The number of product lines at McVitie & Price had been reduced from 370 to ten by 1945.

Robert McVitie Grant (1894 – 1947), chairman of McVitie & Price, died in 1947 with a personal estate valued at £1,033,234.

That same year, Hector Laing (1923 -2010) joined the firm.

McVitie & Price and Macfarlane Lang merged in 1948 to form United Biscuits, with a capital of £3.5 million. The businesses continued to trade under their respective names.

Part II of this history.