In a statement on the situation, a Warburtons spokesperson told Food Manufacture the company would work hard to find alternative roles for those facing redundancy at the factory, which also makes crumpets.
“As a result of an increasingly challenging retail market and falling bread volumes we have taken the difficult decision to enter into a 30-day consultation that could impact a number of jobs at our Stockton bakery,” she said.
“No decision will be made until the thorough consultation is completed and we are supporting everyone affected at this very difficult time.”
Invested £400m
Headquartered in Bolton, Warburtons operates 12 bakeries and 14 depots across the UK. During the past 10 years, the company claims to have invested more than £400m into building and upgrading new and existing bakeries. That includes £20m of investment in its Burnley bakery, equipping it with the capability to produce 34,000 individual items an hour.
The company claims to deliver to 18,500 retail customers a week, producing more than 2m products a day including wax-wrapped loaves, wraps, crumpets, pancakes and bread rolls. Its products account for a quarter of the total wrapped bakery market, which is worth more than £2.8bn a year, according to the business.
Warburtons launched new gluten-free wraps in supermarkets last month as part of a wider overhaul of its gluten-free range.