Number of staff at Greggs production hub test positive for coronavirus – but firm says sausage roll production will NOT be affected
An outbreak of coronavirus has stopped pasty production at a Greggs factory in Newcastle.
The bakery chain has rushed to reassure its customers that supplies should not be affected due to a large reserve of frozen stock.
A 'small number' of the 300 workers at the factory just north of Newcastle and the company is working with local public health authorities to minimise the impact on the local area.
The bakery chain has rushed to reassure its customers that supplies should not be affected due to a large reserve of frozen stock (file photo of a Leeds store)
A 'small number' of the 300 workers at the factory just north of Newcastle and the company is working with local public health authorities to minimise the impact on the local area (file photo)
A Greggs spokesperson told Sky News: 'Following a small number of colleagues having tested positive for COVID-19 at our Balliol manufacturing facility, we have taken the decision to temporarily stop production as a precautionary measure to keep our teams as safe as possible.'
Supplies are still expected to reach the 1,700 Greggs shops around the country, a spokesman said: 'We do not foresee any stock shortages in our shops at this time.'
The factory is in the part of North East England where 2 million people are covered by a local lockdown.
It is the latest in a string of food manufacturing plants that have been at the centre of coronavirus outbreaks.