A BREAD factory has enlisted the help of the North-East Business and Innovation Centre (BIC) to save £9,000 a year in production costs.

Allied Bakeries, which supplies Kingsmill, Allinson and Sunblest bread nationwide, reviewed its production process when it started losing thousands of loaves a month after its packaging was modified to a wax-based paper.

The company, on the Team Valley trading estate, in Gateshead, called on BIC's Product and Process Development Unit (PPDU) to help reduce the wastage.

David Hunt, Allied Bakeries plant engineer and manager, said: "We were particularly concerned about the increasing level of wastage during the production process."

Vince McDonald, PPDU manager, said: "Often it takes another set of eyes to find a simple solution to a problem that could be costing a company thousands of pounds."