The announcement today (16 May) came three months after the US group indicated the site in Trafford Park was being lined up for closure.

In a statement, Kellanova said the move would lead to the loss of around 360 roles.

The plant produces Corn Flakes, Rice Krispies and Coco Pops for retailers in the country and in Ireland.

“We remain clear there isn’t a long-term future for the site. It’s laid out in a way that made sense in the 1930s, with food travelling up and down six floors in a legacy manufacturing process. What’s more, we only use half the space in the buildings and the investment required to maintain the factory in the coming years is simply not viable,” Chris Silcock, the MD of Kellanova’s UK business, said.

The Coco Pops maker employs around 1,000 staff across its UK headquarters in Salford and its factory in Wrexham in north Wales.

Kellanova said it “aiming to retain production volumes” carried out at the Trafford Park site in the UK. “Further information about this will be shared later this year,” the statement read.

Mick Murray, an area organiser for trade union Usdaw, said: “Usdaw has engaged in meaningful consultation talks with the company, where we interrogated their business case. Regrettably it became clear that the site is not fit for purpose and unable to accommodate modern manufacturing processes.”

When Kellanova first announced the plans to close the site, it also set out plans to shut a factory in North America.

The company said it wanted to reorganise its frozen supply chain network in North America to improve the productivity of its operations in the market.