GREGGS is ditching its self-serve fridges to try to tackle soaring shoplifting rates.
Items such as sandwiches and bottled drinks have been moved behind the counter in at least five of its branches.
The trial follows a which showed that brazen thieves were every 20 minutes.
A in Whitechapel, , is one where customers now have to ask for a chilled item.
A worker said: “ before was so bad.
“I couldn’t put a number on how many thieves came in every day.”;;
A local, Abdeslam Saadons, 58, said: “A couple of months ago I saw a guy take a whole case of Coca-Cola.”;;
Other shops have been fitted with bank-style screens at the counter or introduced full-time security guards.
Greggs said of the fridge move: “This is one of a number of initiatives we are trialling across a handful of shops which are exposed to higher levels of .
“Safety of our colleagues and customers remains our number one priority.”;;
