Norfolk's ice cream sellers warn soaring costs could be terminal
It comes as temperatures are thought to hit in excess of 30 degrees today - which may tempt many down to the Norfolk coast
Norfolk's ice cream sellers are calling on the Government to tackle rising fuel prices- warning that soaring costs could prove terminal for the industry, if not addressed.
It comes as temperatures are thought to hit in excess of 30 degrees today - which may tempt many down to the Norfolk coast, through-out the day.
"There's only so much you can do"
Omar Lamarti works for Lamarti’s Ice Cream, who operate across the county.
He told it's all starting to bite and have serious knock on effects: "We've got a massive walk-in freezer at our warehouse that runs 24/7 and we've also got 12 or 13 vans that we plug in every night as well.
"It went over double our yearly spending on electricity. We had to put up our prices to cover our costs, but there's only so much you can do.
"The people that are about would buy an ice-cream. But there's less people coming out and about. For example, we park up near beaches and people travel there in their cars, but because of the hike in the fuel prices it's just not feasible anymore."
"Ice cream's probably seen as a luxury now"
He went on to say that the current picture just isn't sustainable: "For a van to go out it was £15 of diesel for the day.
"Now, you've looking at about £40 to fuel up. If you think that you've got ten vans that are going out, it's quite a big cost and you can't really put the prices up anymore.
"When the sun is shining you've got to make the most of it, and it's quite hot for June. But we're just not taking as much as we would in previous years.
"People are looking after their money a lot more, with electricity and fuel prices- ice cream is probably seen as a luxury now."