English Village Salads has launched a consultation on the future of its business after the supplier reported a “sustained period of reduced demand”.

The Bakkavör-owned company said demand had dropped significantly after Asda, one of its major customers, decided earlier this year to take much of its salad procurement in-house to its direct sourcing arm IPL.

“This, combined with the ongoing challenging trading environment, has continued to have a significant effect on the volume of business managed through EVS throughout the remainder of 2011,” the company said in a statement.

A 90-day consultation has now begun with all of EVS’s staff – 44 salaried staff and 134 hourly-paid staff. EVS pledged to consider “all representations made on behalf of the company’s employees.”

The news follows an earlier round of redundancies at EVS in September, when 24 salaried staff and 50 weekly-paid staff lost their jobs.