A RADICAL reshaping of Cadbury Schweppes’ confectionery business, to be unveiled this week, is expected to lead to the axing of more than 5,000 jobs, according to insiders.

The company’s chief executive, Todd Stitzer, will on Tuesday spell out Cadbury’s strategy for the confectionery operation following the planned sale of the group’s US drinks business, likely to reap at least £7 billion. It is thought he will declare a target of cutting the worldwide confectionery work-force by about 10% – equivalent to more than 5,000.

Cadbury announced in March that it was to shed its US drinks business, best known for brands including Dr Pepper, 7-Up and Snapple. The move followed the acquisition of a 3% stake in Cadbury by American activist investor Nelson Peltz.

The Sunday Times later disclosed that Cadbury and its advisers were drawing up plans to find savings of about £300m a year from the remaining confectionery business – the world’s largest. The figure is likely to be confirmed this week.

It will spell out plans for problem businesses in Nigeria, Russia and China. Some savings will come from closing manufacturing operations.

But it is thought that the biggest focus will be on overheads – so-called sales, general and administrative costs. Stitzer is reckoned to believe that, with the development of Cadbury’s businesses over the past few years, the organisational structure has become too complex with too many overlaps. These costs account for some 20% of turnover, compared with 12% for some of Cadbury’s rivals.

Some administrative functions may be outsourced.

It is not yet clear how many of the job cuts will fall in the UK. Cadbury has already announced that it is to quit its head offices in Mayfair, central London, and move out to Uxbridge, west London.

Cadbury is likely this week to give some indication of the possible scale of its capital-gains-tax liability on selling the US business. Analysts have speculated that it could run into hundreds of million of pounds.

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