Nestlé is planning to cut almost 150 jobs in France and outsource the marketing of a clutch of brands, a trade union has said.

According to trade union CFDT Agri-Agro, Nestlé is looking to axe 148 jobs as part of moves to “drastically reduce” its sales force in the country.

The world’s largest food maker, meanwhile, wants to contract out the marketing in France of Nestlé cereals, Maggi, Nesquik and condensed milk, the union said.

The CFDT argued Nestlé’s sale in July of its baby-food assets in France “serves as a pretext” to make the changes.

In a statement, Nestlé’s subsidiary in France declined to comment directly on job cuts or on the number of posts that could be eliminated but said talks are taking place.

“A dialogue is currently ongoing with the unions as part of an information-consultation process, for which a decision is expected to be made by the end of the year. At this stage of the process, it is only a project, and priority is given to the unions,” a statement from Nestlé France said.

The CFDT said a meeting this week of staff representatives had “denounced” the plan.

“This model, presented as a ‘growth project’ by management, is, in fact, very clearly designed to meet the profitability imperatives imposed by the group,” the union said.

Nestlé said the proposed changes stemmed from a “thorough reflection” of what the Swiss giant called “a dynamic of changes in our environment”.

The company pointed to a series of factors: “a highly competitive landscape; a deep transformation phase that the retail sector is going through in France; and an evolution of our brand portfolio in the last past years”.

Nestlé said it needed “an adaptation of the scope of activities covered by the Nestlé France sales force”.

In July, the group sold its baby-food assets in France to FnB Private Equity. The deal, struck for an undisclosed sum, covered the NaturNes, Babicao and Babivanille brands, along with the P’tit franchises.

Nestlé's waters business in France has also been under the spotlight in recent months.

Last month, the company agreed to a settlement and a €2m ($2.2) fine with French authorities amid claims of breaching laws on mineral water and illegal drilling.

Nestlé was accused of using multiple purification treatments on bottled water that was labelled ‘mineral water’.

In France, it is illegal to use purification techniques on water products labelled ‘spring’ or ‘mineral’, as they are already considered safe to drink due to being sourced directly from protected natural springs.

The food and beverage giant previously stated it had used activated carbon filters and ultraviolet systems in the purification of its water brands, both of which are not allowed by French mineral water regulators.