Cafe owners' anger at Ministry of Food makeover

Traders contacted the Advertiser this week to express their frustration at having to go into competition with the council-backed project at a time when they are struggling to keep their businesses afloat.

The Ministry of Food is currently undergoing a £20,000 revamp as part of a strategy which will see it tapping into the lunch time trade in an effort to become self-funding amid stringent cutbacks to the government funding it had previously relied upon.

The centre which has served as a healthy cooking training centre until now will serve hot food, healthy snacks and coffee during lunch time hours, starting today.

Cafe owners trying to earn their livelihood just yards away fear that their trade could drop off by 50 per cent.

Michael Green, the owner of Churchill’s cafe and The Pantry Green, said: “Churchill’s is only just keeping its head above water and when you see what is essentially a council-backed cafe opening up just across the road, that is pretty hard to stomach.

“I spent £150,000 setting up the Pantry Green a few years ago in an effort to entice people through the door but now grant funding is making it possible for the Ministry of Food to create an eye-catching alternative in a prime location.

“I’m not averse to competition but I think this is totally unfair.”

Rotherham’s Ministry of Food was mainly funded by grants from the Department of Health and the Department of Communities and Local Government after

Rotherham Borough Council and NHS Rotherham vowed to back the brainchild of celebrity chef Jamie Oliver back in 2008.

Tight budgeting has seen the centre survive for more than two years on grants intended to last just 12 months.

Now the remainder of that cash will be used to transform the Ministry of Food into a partly self-sustaining project.

It is hoped that the scheme could attract corporate sponsorship to help it to continue spreading its healthy eating message.

Matt Gladstone, assistant chief executive at Rotherham Borough Council, said that the Ministry of Food was bringing a “huge range of benefits” to the town.

Clarifying issues around the centre’s new strategy, along with its funding, he added:

“The Ministry of Food does not view itself as competition for other town centre businesses and will be selling only a very limited range of food options. 

“Its priorities will continue to be helping Rotherham people to improve their eating habits and to learn more about cooking healthy food.

“Neither the council nor the NHS has provided any funding in this current financial year.”