Nestlé hungers for e-procurement strategy

NEWS Swiss food retailer Nestlé is considering implementing a virtual procurement market place for some of its main food lines. Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, spokesman for Nestlé, said the company was considering a business-to-business model with other grocers similar to that proposed by Ford, DaimlerChrysler and General Motors for the auto industry. Nestlé claimed it was working on projects similar to those of Procter & Gamble and Unilever to reconstruct the distribution and procurement of products such as Buitoni, Nescafé, Nestea, Friskies and Maggi. Brabeck-Letmathe said the reconstruction programme continued daily and cost an estimated SFr 300m or SFr 400m (£115m or £153m).