Fresh food company axes 100 jobs

A major fresh food manufacturer is laying off 100 workers as part of a restructuring programme.

Geest has axed the jobs at its head offices in Spalding, Lincolnshire and in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire.

The staff - all from the human resources, marketing and information technology departments - were told of the layoffs individually.

The company was taken over for £485m in May by the Icelandic firm Bakkavor, which produces chilled food.

Paula Cooper, from Geest, said: "It is a quick timescale but the decision was made to do it as quickly as possible so people could come to terms with it and start looking for new jobs.

"Where possible we have been able to give career advice but we've left it up to each head of department."

The firm employs more than 13,000 staff at sites across the UK and also in Belgium, France, Spain and South Africa.