Commercial Refrigeration Used in Greggs’ Kitchen
Commercial Refrigeration
Used in Greggs’ Kitchen
Every fridge, freezer, blast chiller and display unit keeping Britain’s favourite bakery chain fresh — across 2,735 stores, from kiosk to drive-through.
“That quiet hum behind the counter? It’s one of the most important systems in any Greggs store. Without it, nothing works — and with more than 2,735 UK locations, getting refrigeration right isn’t just nice to have. It’s absolutely non-negotiable.”
Why Refrigeration Is Critical for Greggs
Greggs isn’t just a bakery anymore — it’s a full food-to-go operation. Every chilled sandwich, cold drink, yoghurt pot, and dairy product depends on refrigeration that is reliable, HACCP-compliant, and energy-efficient around the clock.
J&M Refrigeration is proud to work with Greggs, Hilton and SPAR, supplying products from manufacturers including Arneg, Frost-trol and Hitachi to help them save money every year with efficient commercial refrigeration.
Greggs’ new frozen production and logistics facility at SmartParc SEGRO Derby includes an onsite shared Energy Centre — a centralised heating and cooling system that recycles heat from refrigeration plants across the estate. That’s the scale of thinking going into their cold chain at HQ level.
Greggs’ new Derby facility uses a centralised Energy Centre to recycle heat from refrigeration plants across the site, alongside rainwater harvesting and PV panels — a sustainability-first cold chain.
Equipment Types at a Glance
🌡️ Operating Temperature Targets by Equipment Type
Small & Standard High-Street Stores
A standard Greggs high-street shop has limited back-of-house space — typically just a kitchen corridor behind the counter. Refrigeration here has to be compact, reliable and easy for staff to manage with minimal training.
1. Undercounter Refrigerators
The workhorses of the back kitchen — tucked under prep surfaces, keeping fillings, dairy and drinks at arm’s reach. Undercounter fridges offer a compact and practical way to utilise space, as they can be positioned under existing worktops, making them ideal for all kinds of catering establishments. Brands used in food-to-go environments include Polar, Foster, Blizzard and Tefcold, operating at 1–4°C with a typical capacity of 100–140 litres.
2. Display Multideck Chillers (Front-of-House)
These open-fronted or glass-door display units at the front of every Greggs store keep cold drinks, chilled sandwiches and snacks visible and perfectly cold. Arneg is an international leader in the design, production and installation of complete equipment for the retail sector — their units are a standard choice for food-to-go chains across the UK.
3. Upright Storage Refrigerators
Single or double-door upright fridges in the back kitchen hold the daily delivery stock. Foster and Williams Refrigeration have built global reputations over 30 years for premium quality refrigeration that always delivers on performance, value and reliability — making them natural choices for operations with Greggs’ throughput demands.
4. Blast Chillers
Blast chillers are an essential piece of health and safety equipment in any commercial kitchen. In a Greggs context, they rapidly cool freshly baked products from oven temperature down to safe chilled storage — a critical HACCP step that protects both food safety compliance and product quality.
🏪 Small Store Setup
- 1–2 undercounter fridges (100–140L)
- 1 upright storage fridge (300L)
- 1 display multideck (1.25m)
- 1 countertop blast chiller
- 1 upright freezer (200L)
🏢 Large Store / Drive-Through
- 3–4 undercounter fridges
- 2 upright storage fridges (600L+)
- 2–3 display multidecks (remote)
- Full upright blast chiller (18kg)
- Walk-in cold room (3×3m+)
- 2+ upright freezers (330L+)
Also, check out the best in class Heated Display Cabinets Bigger Greggs locations — drive-throughs, motorway sites, flagship retail parks — carry significantly more refrigeration capacity. Here, volume and energy efficiency become paramount. Large-format Greggs sites use modular walk-in cold rooms for high-volume ingredient storage. The range of commercial cold rooms is designed according to the latest standards of the refrigeration industry, with modular remote or integrated configurations. These are supplied and installed by Arneg specialists like Coolwise and Cool Check in the UK. Extended display runs use remote refrigeration — compressors housed separately from the display cabinet, reducing noise and heat at front of house. The Arneg Osaka 3 remote multideck range is a great investment, equipped with energy saving technologies with a stylish outlook and efficient functionality. Trade Cooling reports that up to a massive 71% reduction in energy consumption can be achieved by working with specialist engineers and combining energy saving options in Arneg refrigeration systems — significant for Greggs’ thousands of sites. Here’s the current market across online and offline UK suppliers for the types of refrigeration used in food-to-go bakery operations like Greggs: Pair eCatering for standard fridges and blast chillers (competitive listed prices), Coolwise/Cool Check for Arneg display units (direct import pricing), and Caterquip UK for used premium brands — typically 40–60% below new. For maintenance at scale, go direct to J&M Refrigeration.Larger Outlets, Drive-Throughs & Flagship Sites
5. Walk-In Cold Rooms
6. Remote Multideck Display Units
UK Price Comparison Across Suppliers
Equipment Type Model Example Inc. VAT Supplier Channel Undercounter Fridge Polar G-Series 140L ~£450–£550 Nisbets / eCatering Online Undercounter Fridge Foster EcoPro G2 ~£700–£850 Caterkwik / Nisbets Online Upright Fridge 400L Contender 400L SS £699.98 eCatering Online Upright Fridge 600L Contender 600L SS £1,647.04 eCatering Online Upright Fridge 600L Williams Jade ~£2,200–£2,800 Nisbets / Caterkwik Online Blast Chiller (countertop) Polar G-Series 8/5kg £1,308 (sale) eCatering Online Blast Chiller (upright) Contender 5×GN 18kg £1,699.98 eCatering Online Display Multideck Arneg Osaka 3 1250mm ~£2,500+ Coolwise / Cool Check Direct Walk-In Cold Room Arneg Modular 3×3m £3,000–£8,000+ Coolwise / Arneg UK Direct Upright Freezer Polar G-Series 330L ~£900–£1,100 Nisbets Online Any Type (used) Williams, Foster, Polar 40–60% off new Caterquip UK Used Service Contract Annual maintenance POA J&M Refrigeration Direct 💷 Price Comparison by Equipment Type (Typical Inc VAT, £)
🏬 Price Range by Supplier — Upright Fridge 400–600L (£ inc VAT)
Also, check out the best in class Bake-off OvensWhere to Buy: Online vs Offline
Supplier Speciality Delivery Contact Type Nisbets Full range, all brands UK-wide, next-day nisbets.co.uk Online eCatering Competitive pricing Free on most items ecatering.co.uk Online Caterkwik Arneg, cold rooms UK-wide caterkwik.co.uk Online FridgeFreezerDirect Storage fridges 48hr fridgefreezerdirect.co.uk Online J&M Refrigeration Greggs official; Arneg, Frost-trol, Hitachi West Midlands + national 0121 544 0555 Direct Coolwise Arneg Scotland exclusives Scotland + UK coolwise.co.uk Direct Cool Check Arneg UK importer 48hr, 30,500 sq ft coolcheck.co.uk Direct Caterquip UK Premium refurbished brands UK-wide 01733 739696 Used Frequently Asked Questions
What brands of refrigeration does Greggs use?
Does a standard Greggs store need a walk-in cold room?
Why are blast chillers so important in Greggs?
Are Arneg display fridges available to buy online in the UK?
Can I buy second-hand commercial refrigeration for a food-to-go startup?
Final Thoughts ❄️
The refrigeration system powering a Greggs store is genuinely impressive engineering — from the blast chiller ensuring HACCP compliance on every sausage roll, to the Arneg remote multidecks keeping drinks cool and visible at the front of house.
Start with eCatering and Nisbets for transparent pricing. Go direct to J&M Refrigeration or Coolwise for Arneg units and service contracts. And if budget is tight, Caterquip’s refurbished stock will get you premium brands at a fraction of the cost. 🥐
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