Warburtons acquires former Rathbones bakery in Wakefield
The deal is part of a more than £100m investment from the food company into its production and distribution networks and follows the closure of the 28,000 sq ft site earlier this year.
Warburtons finalised the deal directly with the Myton Food Group, which is the manufacturing arm of Morrisons, for an undisclosed price.
The deal includes the land, buildings, and all machinery at the bakery, and it is expected to support around 40 jobs once open.
The Wakefield site will become Warburton’s 13th production site in the UK, and is expected to be fully operational by September this year.
The acquisition comes as the company turns 150 and amid increasing demand for its offerings, with sales of the brand’s products rising by 2.1% last year to reach £598.3m, according to data from analyst Nielsen.
Elsewhere in West Yorkshire, GMI Construction has started on site at the former Ferrybridge power station, building a 66,000 sq ft depot for Warburtons due to complete in August.
Warburtons has signed a 20-year pre-let at Mountpark Ferrybridge, which has outline planning consent for up to 1.64m sq ft of industrial and logistics space.
Warburtons is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year.
Chairman, Jonathan Warburton said: “We’re extremely pleased to have agreed a deal on the former Rathbones site and look forward to welcoming new colleagues to the business very soon.
“Our family business takes a long-term approach, investing in our infrastructure to ensure we not only meet consumer needs today, but are set up to do so for the future.”
