Recession shuts Wrigley for week

The Wrigley factory in Estover is shutting for the week

A Devon chewing gum factory which introduced short term working because of the credit crunch has closed its premises over the half term holiday.

Wrigley's, which has a factory in the Estover area of Plymouth, is closed for the bank holiday but will remain shut for the next four days too.

The firm also closed its factory on the day before Good Friday.

It said the closures were scheduled to coincide with bank holidays as many staff were already taking time off.

'Healthy' future

But despite introducing short-term working, a spokeswoman for Wrigley's said that the future for the firm "looks healthy".

"Many manufacturing operations have been affected by the current economic climate in the UK, and Wrigley, like others, is not immune from this," she added.

"The long-term future of the gum category looks healthy, however, and we are confident that we will weather the storm as we have done in the past.

"The Wrigley company has had a presence in Plymouth for nearly 40 years and has made multi-million pound investments in its facilities over that time.

"We are totally committed to maintaining and expanding our presence in the city, now and in the future."