Morrisons to downsize Rathbones Bakery to avoid closure
Morrisons has confirmed it will not be closing the Rathbones bakery, opting instead to have it remain open “albeit on a smaller scale”.
“The new Rathbones will operate on a different model with lower capacity and making fewer, more specialist bakery products”
Production of traditional sliced bread will be ceased at the 28,000 sq ft manufacturing site in Wakefield, which will instead focus exclusively on baking specialist products such as crumpets, pancakes, naans, and pittas. Moving forward, the retailer is to source own-label sliced bread for its supermarkets from an external supplier, with further details yet to be confirmed.
Last November, Morrisons revealed it had been conducting a strategic review and was considering closing Rathbones following a number of loss-making years. Most recently filed accounts on Companies House by Rathbone Kear Ltd for the 52 weeks ended 29 October 2023 reported a loss after tax of £2.2m, which followed a £1.4m loss in FY22.
A Morrisons spokesperson commented that, although Rathbones is projected to remain loss-making this year and next, its new plan has a pathway to break even in 2027.
Morrisons said it had held detailed discussions with its Rathbones employees and with the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union (BFAWU). “We are pleased that we have agreed a way forward for Rathbones to remain open albeit on a smaller scale,” stated the spokesperson. “The new Rathbones will operate on a different model with lower capacity and making fewer, more specialist bakery products”.
Accordingly, the workforce is being slashed from its current 378 staff members down to 138. Morrisons claimed all employees were offered voluntary redundancy with 270 deciding to take it. “We are grateful to colleagues and the Union for the constructive and realistic discussions which resulted in this agreement, enabling Rathbones to remain open, contributing to the local economy and to Morrisons and our customers,” added the spokesperson.
BFAWU general secretary Sarah Woolley said: “Whilst we remain disappointed that the company has made the decision to cease bread production after over 30 years of it being made at the site, at least it is not a full factory closure as was initially planned. Their vision for a new model does allow some production to continue and hopefully build upon in the future and we will continue to support BFAWU members through that.”
Morrisons stepped in to rescue the Rathbones business from administration in 2005, spendig £15.5m to purchase part of its bakery operations while Warburtons took over a site in Stockton, Teesside. Two years later, the supermarket acquired the whole of the business by buying out the 20% stake still owned by entrepreneur Harry Kear. In 2016, a major fire devastated the dry goods store, warehouse, and pitta production line in Wakefield, requiring two full years to fully reopen.
Rathbones is now part of the supermarket’s Myton Food Group, which runs 18 manufacturing sites across England, Wales and Scotland. According to its website, Rathbones was producing over 900 tonnes of baked goods every week.
