Plant-based ready meal company, The Brook, is set to close following a “challenging” six months.

The announcement was made via social media by CEO Thea Brook.

The Brook was founded by Thea and Andy Brook in 2013 and over the years it developed from an arts café, into a plant-based restaurant and then into a meal delivery company. When the pandemic forced The Brook restaurants to close their doors in 2020, the founders began working on ideas to reach people at home with their innovative dishes.

The meals were stocked in co-op stores until, determined to reach more people, the founders launched home delivery in 2021, delivering the five-minute meals and menu ideas direct to customers’ doors.

In a statement on LinkedIn, Thea said: “Over the past 2.5 years, we have battled hard through one economic crisis after another. Over the past 6 months, the market has become more than ‘challenging’. We have seen many of our fresh ingredients double in price, our transport costs almost triple and our energy bills more than quadruple.”

She added: “Together we achieved so much in such a critical area of development. We changed thousands of minds about what it meant to eat a plant-based diet. And we challenged the bigger companies to do better in this space. These impacts will live on and continue to positively impact the planet, long after we close our doors.”

The company had an acquisition set in motion but when the buyer pulled out last minute, The Brook was forced to stop trading.

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