Bakery chain Greggs has insisted supplies of its sausage rolls will be unaffected after a coronavirus outbreak among factory staff.
A “small number” of the 300 workers at the chain’s production hub north of Newcastle have tested positive for COVID-19 and bosses have moved to close down production.
The firm is now working with local public health teams to minimise the impact on the wider community.
Image: Supplies will still be able to reach stores, the chain says
A Greggs spokesperson said: “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.”
The firm told Sky News that even though production had been halted, they had a large reserve of frozen stock which would ensure supplies reach their 1,700 shops around the UK.
“We do not foresee any stock shortages in our shops at this time” the spokesperson added.
Around two million people are currently under tighter coronavirus restrictions due to rising infection rates in Northumberland, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, Newcastle, Gateshead, Sunderland and County Durham.
Elsewhere in the UK, several other food manufacturing plants have also been hit by coronavirus outbreaks in recent months, resulting in mass testing and deep cleans before production was allowed to resume.