Villagers are fighting plans to close part of a public footpath at the request of one of the country’s biggest food producers.
Cranswick has applied to the Department for Transport (DfT) to block a section of Nuns Walk, which runs alongside its food processing plant in Preston, near Hull.
The company said the changes would “reduce disruption” for residents and ensure “the safety of pedestrians”.
Pat Ferguson, who has lived in the village for 44 years, described the move as “big business stealing our heritage”, adding: “It’s history and we don’t have much – it keeps getting eroded.”
Part of Nuns Walk runs over a private road belonging to Cranswick, which is used by HGVs going to and from the site.
The Hull-based company has applied for a stopping-up order – a legal process used to close a highway – to prevent the use of at least 180m (590ft) of the footpath, which would instead be diverted.
According to Ferguson, the partially cobbled route takes its name from nuns who are said to have walked from the village church to a hospital in what is now east Hull.