Hovis: NI bread supplies at risk due to strike action

Bread supplies across Northern Ireland are likely to be affected by planned industrial action, a union has warned.

Workers at a Hovis bakery in south Belfast are due to walk out on Sunday in a dispute over pay.

The Unite union, which represents workers at the bakery, said the strike would shut down bread production if talks with Hovis management were unsuccessful.

Staff at the plant are seeking a 13.4% wage increase.

Hovis has previously said its Belfast operation produces 35% of all bread sold in Northern Ireland.

Workers at the south Belfast bakery last walked out in 2021

Unite regional officer Sean McKeever said emergency talks were planned for Wednesday morning in an attempt to resolve the dispute.

"While these people make the bread, they also have to buy it," he told the BBC's Good Morning Ulster programme.

Mr McKeever said workers' disposable income was being "eaten up by food inflation", adding that some Hovis employees had been forced to use foodbanks.

Workers at the Apollo Road factory last walked out in 2021 in industrial action which lasted 11 days.

Some large retailers reported small supply issues at the time, but other suppliers stepped in to cover gaps in provision.

The strike was ended after staff accepted an 8% pay increase.

BBC News NI has contacted Hovis for comment.