MORE than 700 workers at food preparation firm Bakkavor Group will walk out in protest over pay next week.

Members of Unite working at the company in Spalding will be taking part in continuous strike action from September 27.

The workers, who prepare meals for the likes of Marks and Spencer and Waitrose, earn just above the minimum wage and rejected a pay offer of 6 per cent in May. 

Meanwhile, Bakkavor reported half-year profits of £55 million for 2024.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Bakkavor has built a highly profitable business on the backs of workers and yet fails to recognise their hard work in incredibly tough working conditions.

“Our members are rightly angry after years of below-inflation pay rises, the most recent offer is an insult.”

Unite regional officer Sam Hennessy said: “Bakkavor is stalling and refusing to negotiate constructively and take an approach of ‘my way or the highway.’ 

“Strike action will inevitably cause disruption and shortages to supermarkets across the UK but this dispute is entirely of Bakkavor’s own making.”