Two senior directors have left Heinz as part of a major shake-up of the business.

Heinz’s UK & Ireland finance director John Campbell and manufacturing director for quick serve meals Gordon Maughan have both left the company.

In their place, Heinz has promoted Matt Brown to country finance director UK & Ireland. Graham Souter has taken over Maughan’s responsibilities for managing the Kitt Green factory.

The appointments are part of a major restructuring plan initiated by Heinz following the completion of the $28bn sale of Heinz to Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway and 3G Capital in June.

Heinz said last month it was developing a new “streamlined structure” for the UK & Ireland. Under the proposals - which are under consultation - 248-office based jobs are at risk. Heinz said the move would put it in a better position to fund future growth.

It denied the redundancies were part of a plan to turn Heinz UK & Ireland into a sales-focused operation.

The company said the business would retain its autonomy to set and execute strategy independent of the Pittsburgh head office. “Heinz remains focused on marketing and innovation across our strong portfolio of brands, retailing local autonomy and agility,” said a spokesman.

It added that this was illustrated by the recent appointment of Giles Jepson as VP of marketing for Heinz Europe in addition to his current role as chief marketing officer for Heinz UK & Ireland.

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