Tesco stores around the UK from today have either removed the fresh meat and fish counters or reduced their operating hours to one or two days per week.
Following announcements made in January that Tesco would close the food counters across 90 stores nationwide, cutting around 9000 staff, the changes have come into effect from yesterday 15th May. The changes could be seen as a reflection of reduced demand for meat products in the UK, where the market for vegan products is skyrocketing.
Tesco has been gradually increasing its vegan offerings over the past year, such as its Wicked Kitchen range created by chef Derek Sarno, which doubled its range due to high demand upon its launch last October.
Tesco commented about the changes in January, that it was scaling back and cutting jobs in a bid to save money. A Tesco spokesman said: “Our counter changes have now taken place in store and we have communicated these changes to our customers. We have supported colleagues that have been impacted by these changes including, where possible, offering alternative roles in our business.”
