Up to 1,200 jobs to go at Asda’s in-store bakeries

Asda will cut around 1,200 jobs from its own bakeries due to changing demand from customers.

The Leeds-headquartered chain currently employs bakers who make bread in store from scratch.

But now the business says it intends to move to a central bakery model which will deliver pre-baked breads to its supermarkets.

Derek Lawlor, head of merchandising at Asda, said: “The current in-store bakery model has restricted our ability to respond to changing customer demands.”

Because of this, he said, the chain had not been able to offer shoppers “speciality products and freshly baked goods they want to buy throughout the day”.

Asda explains the changes would mean it will be able to bake fresh products several times a day, rather than once a day in store.

It says it will start a formal consultation with its bakers and bakery managers.

A statement from the business adds: “If the proposals are enacted, the priority will be to move as many colleagues as possible into alternative roles within Asda, with redundancy the last option.”

The move by Asda comes in the wake of a similar decision by its rival Tesco last year.