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Nestlé cuts 16,000 jobs as part of an
intensifying cost-cutting campaign
[October 17, 2025]
By MICHELLE CHAPMAN
Nestlé is
cutting 16,000 jobs globally as the Swiss food giant cuts costs as part
of its efforts to revive its financial performance.
Nestlé, which makes Nescafé, KitKats, pet foods and many other
well-known consumer brands, said Thursday that the job cuts will take
place over the next two years. The Swiss company also said that it is
raising targeted cost cuts to 3 billion Swiss francs ($3.76 billion) by
the end of next year, up from a planned 2.5 billion Swiss francs ($3.13
billion).
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In this Thursday, Feb. 14, 2019, file photo, Nestle's logo is displayed
on a window, during the 2018 full-year results press conference of the
food and drinks giant Nestle, in Vevey. (Laurent Gillieron/Keystone via
AP, File) |
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It
has been a turbulent year for the company, based Vevey,
Switzerland. Last month, Nestle dismissed CEO Laurent Freixe
after an investigation into an undisclosed relationship with a
subordinate.
Freixe had only been on the job for a year. He was replaced by
Philipp Navratil, a longtime Nestlé executive.
Shortly after Freixe was ousted, Chairman Paul Bulcke stepped
down early.
Nestlé is also fighting a host of external headwinds like other
food makers, including rising commodity costs and U.S. imposed
tariffs. The company announced price hikes over the summer to
offset higher coffee and cocoa costs.
President Donald Trump has implemented a 50% tariff on Brazilian
goods like coffee and orange juice. The Trump administration
imposed a 40% tariff on Brazilian products in July, which was on
top of a 10% tariff imposed earlier. Coffee habits in the U.S.
are almost exclusively fueled by imports. Official U.S.
government data shows Brazil, the world’s top coffee producer,
supplies about 30% of the American market, followed by Colombia
at roughly 20% and Vietnam at about 10%. Tariff negotiations are
ongoing.
The price of cocoa soared to record highs last year after
inclement weather in areas where it is grown constrained supply
and hit companies like Nestlé hard. While cocoa costs began to
fall in 2025 as supply increased, cocoa is vastly more expensive
than it was just two years ago.
Nestlé said Thursday that it will eliminate 12,000 white-collar
positions in multiple locations. The job cuts are expected to
achieve annual savings of 1 billion Swiss francs ($1.25 billion)
by the end of next year. The company will cut 4,000 jobs as part
of ongoing productivity initiatives in its manufacturing and
supply chain.
“The world is changing, and Nestlé needs to change faster,”
Navratil said in a statement.
Shares of Nestlé rose nearly 8% on the SIX Swiss Exchange. The
company's stock, which trades over the counter in the U.S.,
jumped by about the same level at the opening bell Thursday.
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