More than 700 vulnerable people could be left without hot food after August 1 after the county’s biggest independent meals on wheels company pulled the plug on its delivery service.

Apetito Ltd has been serving customers a single hot meal with a dessert since 1995.

But last week customers were told it will discontinue its service – instead offering frozen options from its Wiltshire Farm Foods brand.

The decision comes amid a lack of customers and after the lease on Apetito's Snodland depot expired.

The firm had worked with KCC since 2002 with a customer referral scheme but this ended two years ago.

KCC confirmed it has had no involvement with the company since the end of the contract.

Apetito now says it is no longer serving the number of customers it needs to stay afloat.

In a statement it said: “Our premises lease expires this August and we were given notice from the landlord. We have been unable to find other suitable premises, despite best efforts.”

The company’s Thanet depot will also close with the final deliveries set for July 31.

Customers who relied on this service will have to seek different options.

One is Larkfield resident Ann Langridge, 85, who has Alzheimers and was fully reliant on the company to provide her with a meal a day.

Daughter-in-law, Michelle Langridge, 52, is worried as without the service she may forget to feed herself.

She said: “I don’t know how we’re going to manage, there doesn’t seem to be anything else in Larkfield other than this company. As soon as I got the letter, I did everything I could to find a solution but it seems our only other option is frozen microwave meals.

“These aren’t a good replacement due to my mother-in-law’s condition – she would either forget to put the food in the microwave or forget to take it out.

“We’d instruct her over the phone but once she puts it down she would forget we were having a conversation.”

Michelle lives with her family in Walderslade and so a service like Apetito’s is the best way for her to make sure Ann gets fed.

The cleaning company owner has been left with very few options.

She continued: “I spoke to the council who said to speak to Age UK who do have a similar service which is near but only seems to cover the Maidstone area.

“We need to find something quick though as we haven’t got much time until there are no more hot meals.”

Thanet-based IT engineer, Colin Ball, 42, believes the company hasn’t considered the impact this service has on people.

He feels it is chasing profits by opting to replace cooked meals with frozen food.

He said: “For a lot of these people their daily visit from the hot food delivery driver is the only contact they have with people but now they want to take that away.

“The closure of our depot has not been an easy decision for us and we are very aware of the impact on both our customers and on our team."

“Some of the clients also don’t have a next-of-kin and so these drivers sometimes act as part-time carers to these people.

“I know drivers who have had these people, who are 91 and vulnerable, break down in tears because they don’t know what they are going to do.”

The company said 36 employees would be affected by the closure but was unsure of the number to be made redundant.

It added: “The closure of our depot has not been an easy decision for us and we are very aware of the impact on both our customers and on our team.

“For a private service to be viable, it has to have a certain number of customers using the service. Regrettably, the lack of referrals means this dropped well below the number required in the autumn of 2021.

“Despite our best efforts, we have been unable to achieve the numbers which would enable us to continue the service.

“After taking the sad decision that we could not continue, our depot has undergone an HR consultation in line with all legal requirements to consult with the staff who have been impacted.”

KCC says it will ensure people who used Apetito’s service will be supported to find alternatives.

There are a wide variety of local providers of hot food delivery in Kent including Age UK, Age Concern, Home from Home Meals, Prestige Meals, Presto, and various community groups.