King Charles III was welcomed by the sound of cheers during his historic first visit to Bradford as monarch.
The King marked the beginning of a two-day trip to Yorkshire with a tour round Morrisons headquarters in Thornbury.
Hundreds of staff watched the royal visit from balconies and stairwells, shocking the King as roars of excitement bellowed from above.
King Charles III was received by Ed Anderson, HM Lord Lieutenant of West Yorkshire, and his wife Heather before meeting Morrisons chief executive David Potts.
Imran Hussain, MP for Bradford East, was one of the first people to meet the King at Morrisons headquarters.
"It's fantastic news for Bradford," he said.
"It's an absolutely privilege to welcome the King here today.
"Bradford is a fantastic place that has been quite rightly crowned City of Culture, our heritage, being the curry capital, the literature festival, the list goes on."
Morrisons started life in Bradford as an egg and butter stall in 1899.
It has since grown into a well-known retailer, wholesaler and food producer with its head office employing over 2,000 local people.
The royal delved into Morrisons' farming, sustainability and retail initiatives including their rare breed programme and took an interest in new carbon-neutral eggs.
It has seen chickens fed with insects as part of a food cycle, instead of soya.
Describing what it was like to meet the royal, Sophie Throup, who helped roll-out the 'planet friendly' eggs, said: "Incredibly special. It's a really proud moment for him to come to Morrisons but we do work really hard with farmers that supply us.
"You've heard about the lungs of the world, deforestation and the Amazon. We give soya to hens because it's a really good protein and they can digest it really well, so it's not easy to move farmers away from it. Producing these insects is a really good alternative."
The King met representatives of The Prince’s Countryside Fund before touring round a mock-up of Morrisons’ Market Street fresh food counters.
His Majesty took time to chat with Morrisons own skilled butchers, bakers and fishmongers as well as a group of Community Champions.
Over at the test and development kitchen to view new produce, the King was met with a rib roast of short horned beef as well as a salmon dish.
"This smells irresistible," the King told Gail Paddy, own brand director at Morrisons.
He also met the chiefs behind locally supplied products, Aagrah Foods and Yorkshire Forager cheese.
Shezan Aslam, managing director of family run Aagrah Foods, had the opportunity to speak to the king during his Morrisons headquarters visit.
"It was quite surreal actually," the Shipley resident said.
"When I spoke to him he was very relaxed and down to earth and easy to speak to. He's very warm in his style. Everyone was smiling and happy.
"It makes me feel proud to be a Bradfordian because, having been born and raised in Bradford, we know all the great things Bradford can do. It's lovely Bradford has been recognised in this way with a royal visit."
Ms Paddy, who lives in Wetherby, said: "It was a really proud moment.
"It was a real honour."
Mark Richmond, senior innovation development chef at Morrisons and a Ripon local, gave advice to King Charles III on how to cook the perfect roast.
He said: "It's a once in a lifetime opportunity.
"He was really engaged. He wanted to know about the sustainability of the beef. He was really interested in everything about the food."
Excited staff shake hands with Charles III during his royal visit to #Bradford pic.twitter.com/TKcH07vXjG
— Natasha Meek 📰 (@journomeek) November 8, 2022
Mr Potts led The King towards a podium when the monarch spontaneously shook the hands of excited staff on the escalators.
Among those on the escalator was Joanne Oxley from Pudsey.
"I was slightly on the escalator so he came up front and worked his way up. It was really privileged.
"He's so friendly. He said it was nice to see us all."
Following a speech from Mr Potts, the King revealed a special plaque to commemorate the royal visit.
The King told the Morrisons staff in his speech: “It has been a great pleasure to meet at least some of you and to see what a remarkable operation is run throughout this country. And with so much trouble taken to train apprentices and all the work that's been done by the Community Champions has been so enormously heartening.
"And to see the kind things you do within communities it's very special so I can only thank you for all of that and wish you every possible success in future. And, eventually, a very happy Christmas."
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