CO2 shortage means ‘Christmas will be cancelled’, warns Bernard Matthews boss
Iceland is not the only food business to raise a warning over the impact of CO2 shortages on Christmas.
This weekend, Ranjit Singh Boparan, the owner of Bernard Matthews and 2 Sisters Food Group, said the closure of two large fertiliser plants in Teesside and Cheshire due to a sharp rise in gas prices could mean “Christmas will be cancelled”.
CO2 is essential to the humane slaughter of livestock, extends the shelf life of products and is vital to cooling systems for refrigeration purposes, industry leaders have said.
He said: There are less than 100 days left until Christmas and Bernard Matthews and my other poultry businesses are working harder than ever before to try and recruit people to maintain food supplies.”
He said that “the gaps on the shelves” that he had warned about in July were “getting bigger by the day”.
Boparan continued: “The supply of Bernard Matthews turkeys this Christmas was already compromised as I need to find 1,000 extra workers to process supplies. Now, with no CO2 supply, Christmas will be cancelled.
