More food businesses closed than opened in Doncaster last year, data shows

.More food businesses closed than opened in Doncaster last year, figures have revealed

According to new analysis of Companies House data, 257 restaurant, cafe, takeaway, pub and catering companies based in Doncaster were dissolved in the year to October 2026, against 255 new ones registered.

That's 10.1 closures for every 10 new companies, the 9th highest rate of England's 30 largest cities.

New registrations fell 11% on the year before, while closures rose 24%.

A further 162 of the 1,044 food and drink companies still on the register in Doncaster (15.5%) have been proposed for strike-off, usually a sign they have stopped trading or filing.

Doncaster is one of 10 big English cities where more food and drink companies closed than opened - Wakefield, Brighton and Hove, Leeds, Milton Keynes, Manchester, Plymouth, Birmingham, Newcastle, Doncaster and Portsmouth.

Across the UK, 53,028 food and drink companies were registered and 50,015 dissolved: 9.4 closures for every 10 new companies.

Registrations were down 10% on the year before, and closures up 6%.

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Richard Barker, co-founder of Cairn Catering Engineers, said: "Opening a kitchen has never cost more, and too many new food businesses don't make it to their second year.

“Rising energy bills and equipment that fails at the wrong moment hit small operators hardest, and looking after the kitchen you have is often cheaper than replacing it."

The figures cover companies with a food and drink business code (restaurants, cafes, takeaways, pubs, bars and caterers), placed by their registered office, from Companies House records for November 2025 to October 2026 compared with the year before.

Sole traders and partnerships aren't on the companies register, so the true number of food businesses is higher.

Analysis by Cairn Catering Engineers, updated monthly: https://cairncateringengineers.co.uk/new-food-businesses-by-city/