Fire destroys pet food distribution centre

Fire has totally destroyed Asfordby Storage & Haulage's warehouse and distribution centre in Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire.

The facility is a significant third-party warehousing operation centre for Masterfoods, which manufactures pet foods including Pedigree, Chappie, Whiskas, and Kitekat. Masterfoods is the UK division of Mars and has two large factories in Melton Mowbray and Waltham, as well as another site at nearby Peterborough.

In an exclusive interview, a Mars spokesman tells CM: "We can confirm that the affected facility provides a warehousing operation for our Melton Mowbray and Peterborough petcare packaging materials and a co-packing operation for petcare and food. We are currently assessing the impact of this incident on our business."

The fire caused severe disruption in the town, and the B606 Saxby Road - which runs east from the centre of Melton Mowbray to the A1 trunk road - was closed for several days while firefighters continued to damp down what remained of the warehouse.

Early reports suggest the blaze has caused so much damage that the facility will have to be demolished. Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service say that initial indications suggest the fire was not caused by arson.

No one from Asfordby was available to comment.