Müller's bakers hits back at accusation of being 'greedy' by staying open while the family firm donates charity food parcels to vulnerable

Family business Müller’s have hit back after receiving hateful messages telling them they should be shut during the coronavirus crisis.

The company, which is opening it’s shops on Villette Road and Sea Road selling bread and baked goods, were left shocked by the Facebook messages accusing them of “utter greed”, being “non-essential”, and saying that they should close “when the main supermarkets are selling everything.”

One of the company’s owners, Max Müller, said: “This is our 60th year in Sunderland and we are part of the community. Staying open means people have access to fresh food on their doorstep and don’t need to travel on public transport to busy supermarkets, while our staff get to keep working.

“We are following government guidelines closely to keep everyone as safe as we can. So many people have thanked us over the last week.

“But hey, you can’t please everyone.”

Müllers has been donating bread to the team at Veteran’s In Crisis, who are delivering free food parcels to those in isolation who need it most.

Max added: “It’s nice to be able to help people at times like this, especially men and women who have put their lives on the line for our country.

“My daughters both work for the NHS and introduced me to Ger and the fantastic work he does with Veterans in Crisis.”

Ger Fowler said: “Müller’s have been donating bread they had left and we’ve been distributing veterans and their families, as well as the wider community. Gregg’s and AIS Training have contributed too.

“Because we’ve been given quite a lot of stuff we’ve been able to hand some out to elderly people round Roker. Up to now we’ve managed to to drop off over 50 food parcels. That’s essentials like bread, milk, meat and cheese.

“A lot of the people we’ve delivered to are self-isolating. We leave the food before they come out of the house and we wear masks and gloves.”