Young’s Seafood has moved fishcake production away from a former Cumbrian Seafoods site after customers expressed dissatisfaction with the quality of the products.

The UK seafood giant insisted the decision to switch fishcake production from the Border Laird site in Amble to a facility in Grimsby was a short-term measure but admitted 31 jobs would be lost.

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The decision was made because a number of quality issues meant that “customers were not happy” with the fishcakes coming out of Border Laird, a Young’s spokesperson said.

The spokesperson added that the transfer of production to Young’s existing sites is a “short term measure” not a “long-term solution”.

“This is not a decision that has been taken lightly. The team here at Border Laird have put a lot of effort into exploring this issue and options for fish cake production. They have worked hard during this challenging time and are a huge credit to the whole workforce. However, we have to ensure we have a sustainable plan in place to service the fish cake customer contracts,” Young’s COO Pete Ward said.

Cumbrian Seafoods’ customer contracts and equipment were acquired by Young’s owner Lion Capital in December after the group went into administration.

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The Border Laird site will continue to process langoustine while consultations continue as Young’s looks into options for the business.

The formal consultation processes at the former Cumbrian Seafoods sites in Seaham and Whitehaven are also ongoing, the company added.

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