The End of an Era

In May, 2006 Heinz announced that Birmingham produced HP Sauce would be no more. From now on, Heinz decreed, HP Sauce would be made in Holland and imported to the British market. Outraged, the people of Birmingham rallied behind their beloved sauce. Calls for boycotts were raised, petitions were formed and calls for action ultimately culminated in a huge rally where thousands of people marched on the streets of Birmingham demanding that Heinz reverse their decision. Heinz ultimately refused, thus marking the beginning of the end for this quintessentially British brand.

July 2^nd, 2007 - Denis Adams (East Birmingham British National Party Organizer) displays a somber message. Contributor: Paul Smith

Now, just over a year later, Heinz formally cut its ties with the people of Birmingham by announcing on June 29^th, 2007 that the iconic HP Sauce factory on Tower Road would be facing imminent demolition.

In response, an outraged Brummie wrote me only this morning to vent his frustration:

I think Heinz’s idea is ‘if its not there we will forget’ well we ain’t forgot the first and second world war and as long as there is HP on the shelf we wont forget.

The historic HP sauce factory is located on a 2.39 hectare site in Aston and is the original site of the Midland Vinegar Company founded by Edwin Samson Moore in 1875. Along with HP Sauce and its varieties, the factory continued to produce its own vinegar into the 1990’s and utilized a unique vinegar pipeline which ran over the A38(M) (Aston Motorway). Heinz ultimately closed the factory in March, 2007 following several months of relocation efforts to shift production to the Holland plant. Demolition of the factory commenced on July 2^nd, 2007 - a short 4 months after the closure.

July 2^nd, 2007 - John Bull lays a wreath at the former HP Sauce factory, a Birmingham landmark for over 100 years. Source: The Birmingham Mail

With the dust from the HP factories’ demolition still very fresh in everyones noses, Chancerygate has put forth plans for a regeneration of the site with a new business park making way for up to 200 new jobs. This announcement follows a pre-application consultation with the Birmingham City Council with planning application for the sites redevelopment to be submitted in the coming weeks. The business park, labeled “Chancerygate Business Centre” will provide small industrial units ranging from 1,500 sq ft for lease or sale to local area businesses.

Paul Jenkins, Managing Director of Chancerygate (Business Centre) Ltd:

“This is a very exciting project for us. Our plans will bring to the area a business development which will sustain over 200 full-time jobs.

We want to create for the local community a vibrant new asset bringing employment opportunities to local people in a wide range of businesses.

For over 100 years, the site has occupied an important place in the local community. We now have an opportunity to bring new life to the site.

Given its important place in Aston we want to provide modern accommodation for local businesses, and also new businesses for the area.”

A Birmingham City Council Cabinet spokesman said in response to the proposal:

“We are delighted that so much has been achieved in the short period since the factory sadly closed.

In a few short months proposals have been brought forward which could ultimately create twice as many jobs as there were before the factory shut.

These proposals will play a crucial role, providing much needed jobs and complementing the considerable efforts of the City Council in regenerating Aston and the surrounding area.”

Authors comment: While a lot of good can come out creating new jobs with the construction of a new business complex, the significance of loosing what ought to be considered a site of national historic importance should not be understated. I feel it is a great tragedy that a source of British national pride be torn down only to be replaced with run-of-the-mill 1,500 sq ft warehouse spaces. Rest In Peace HP.

*Sources: The Birmingham Mail, Paul Smith, The Birmingham Branch of the British Nationalist Party’s Blog, BBC News - West Midlands

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 04th, 2007 at 11:09am. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.