A HEREFORD food business is facing a 300 per cent increase in ground rent on top of its rocketing gas and electricity bills.

But Tom Sexton, of Pikadish on the Rotherwas Industrial estate, says local customers are supporting the business.

Pikadish provides meals to eat in or take away and is popular with people working in the Rotherwas estate although Mr Sexton, who has been running the business for the past 15 years, says that customers also come from other parts of the county.

OTHER NEWS:

He has paid tribute to customers who continue to support Pikadish in the face of escalating costs.

“Our customers have been brilliant,” he said.

“Most of them have come back after Covid and there are new customers.”

But this does not change the fact that costs are rocketing, and Mr Sexton added: “Costs are going up all the time and we simply cannot pass them all onto the customers. We are faced with an increase in ground rent of 300 per cent which is a huge increase.”

He added that this comes on top of huge increases in gas and electricity prices but he “just had to get on with it”.

He said that the business not only provides jobs for local people but also supports other businesses in the area.

“We source as much of our produce as we can from excellent local producers,” he added.

OTHER NEWS:

Pikadish opens from Monday to Friday from breakfast time through to mid-afternoon.

“Breakfast is the most popular meal of the day and when we are busiest,” Mr Sexton said.

Another Rotherwas-based food business is Café Mullen in the Rural Enterprise Centre.

Nikki Mullen, who runs the business along with two colleagues, also says that breakfast is the busiest time of the day as people get a meal before going to jobs on the estate. She took over running Café Mullen a year ago and says that businesses are benefitting by the growth in the estate.

Herefordshire Council was asked for a comment on the rise in ground rent but had not responded at the time of going to press.