Pasta Prego: German Baker To Enter Noodle Business

Europe’s largest baking company, Düsseldorf’s Kamps, thinks it’s come up with the solution to the general slump in the German bakery market. Beginning this winter, the company, recently acquired by Italy’s Barilla, plans to expand the retail lineup in its 1,000 stores in Germany to include warm pasta dishes -- effectively turning it into a full-day food supplier. The company has said it will invest a total of €300 million ($354 million) over the next three years to upgrade its offerings and maintain a sustainable profit. During the first nine months of 2003, the company lost €28.7 million. In the same period, however, overall sales grew 1.5 percent to €1.3 billion.