Member Article

Morrisons fresh food supply chain to receive £19 million injection

Bradford-based Morrisons has revealed that it is investing £19 million in its fresh produce supply chain as it continues to be embroiled in a ‘supermarket war’ against its competitors.

The investment will be spread across stores, manufacturing sites and logistics to improve shelf life and lastability and reduce food waste as fresh food items reportedly lose eight hours of life in the home for every hour left unchilled in the supply chain.

This comes months after Morrisons announced they were investing £1 billion in price cuts over the next three years to win back customers.

The group issued a huge profit warning in March, compounding share price falls that have seen the stock lose a third of its value this year.

Chief executive Dalton Philips has been tasked with the turnaround of Morrisons, which has been troubled by the rise of European discounters such as Lidl and Aldi, and is behind rivals in the fast-growing online and convenience store segments.

He has faced strong criticism from former chairman Sir Ken Morrison over his turnaround strategy.

A spokesman told the Yorkshire Post that “the goal [for the investment] is to ensure fruit and veg lasts longer for the customer”.

The spokesman said £12 million will be spent on chilling facilities in all stores and £7 million on Morrisons’ produce facilities at Flaxby near Knaresborough, Cutler Heights in Bradford and Worsley in Salford.

All stores will get new chilling facilities to ensure they can refrigerate the right produce seasonally, and Morrisons has also held ‘produce roadshows’ for greengrocers to help increase the focus on managing the condition of fruit and vegetables.

Progress on these fronts will be revealed next month: Morrisons is due to announce interim results on September 11.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .