A POPULAR Herefordshire cafe serving vegan and plant based meals is set to close at the end of this week.

Plantastik CIC, in West Street, Leominster, is to shut its doors for the final time on Friday after chef and co-director Hanna Woodall decided to retire due to family commitments.

The cafe is a community interest company and all profits go to worthy causes in the area, including local food banks.

Plantastik serves plant-based meals, cakes, and drinks and sources different ingredients each week through food redistribution charity FareShare.

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It is completely volunteer run with people ranging from 18 to 78.

Since opening in Spring 2021 it has built up a loyal customer base throughout Herefordshire, with some regular customers even coming from over the Shropshire border in Ludlow.

It was recently nominated as a runner-up in the Hereford Times' annual Best Takeaway competition for 2022.

Announcing its closure due to Ms Woodall’s family commitments, the cafe thanked customers for their support and said it had been a "great project".

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Customers have taken to Facebook to show their support after hearing the news.

Louise Burrell said that the cafe's recipe ideas had inspired her to cook in a sustainable way.

Karen Dyson said that while she had only visited once, on a chance discovery on the way back from a holiday, she loved the food, the ethos and the friendly welcome.

Emma Dudley was a regular visitor with her family.

She said: "We're going to miss the cafe so much, thank you so much for all the lovely food and cakes.

"The kids are going to be absolutely devastated."

Rebecca Smith, from Hereford, thanked everyone for making the cafe a great place to meet and eat.

She said: "Thank you for feeding us glorious food, for being green, and for being a relaxed and welcoming cafe.

"To all the volunteers and the chef, you will be missed."