The smell of yeast still hangs in the air at the Vivergo plant in Hull but the machines have fallen quiet. 

More than 100 lorries usually pass through here each day, carrying 3,000 tonnes of wheat. It is milled, fermented and distilled. The final product is bioethanol, a renewable fuel that is then blended into E10 petrol.

This is a vast operation. It took several years to build, with considerable investment, but it is on the verge of closing down. Management and staff are holding out for a last-minute reprieve from the government but time is running out.

It’s been a turbulent journey. The plant was already being annihilated by US rivals, losing about £3m a month. Vivergo and Ensus, based in Teesside, blamed regulations that enable US companies to earn double subsidies.

They were pushing for regulatory change but then a killer blow: The US-UK trade deal, which allows 1.4 billion litres of American ethanol into the UK tariff-free (down from 19%).

“We’ve effectively given the whole of the UK market to the US producers,” said Ben Hackett, managing director at Vivergo.

“If we were to have the same support that the US industry has, if we could use genetically modified crops, we wouldn’t need that tariff. We would be able to compete. If we had the same energy costs. We wouldn’t need those tariffs.”

The government has the weekend to come up with a plan that could keep the business running. If it fails, Vivergo will begin issuing redundancy notices to its 160 staff.

It’s a devastating prospect for workers, many of them live in Hull and are nervous about alternative opportunities in the area.

Mike Walsh, a logistics manager who has been working at the plant for 14 years, said: “It’s not a great place to be at the moment. It’s a very well paid, very high-skilled role and they’ve (Vivergo) given everybody an opportunity in an area that doesn’t pay that well…. The jobs market isn’t as good as what people would like. So it does impact the local economy.”

He called on the government to “help us, save us, give this industry a future”.

His colleague Claire Wood, lead productions engineer, said: “I moved here after a career in oil and gas for 10 years, partly because I want to be part of the transition to renewable fuels. I can see so much potential here and it’s absolutely devastating to know that this place might be closed very, very shortly and that all that potential just goes away.”

Thousands more could be affected. Haulage companies may have to lay off truck drivers and farmers could also suffer a blow.

Vivergo makes bioethanol using wheat. That wheat is bought from farms from Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.

The National Farmers Union has sounded the alarm, saying: “Biofuels are extremely important for the crops sector, and their domestic demand of up to two million tonnes can be very important to balance supply and demand and to produce up to one million tonnes of animal feed as a by-product.”

Another bioproduct is carbon dioxide. The gas can be captured and used to put the fizz in drinks or injected into packaging to preserve food.

If Vivergo and Ensus were to go, Britain would lose as much as 80% of its output of carbon dioxide. Supplies are already tight across Europe, meaning this decision could compound shortages across a range of sectors, from meat-packing to healthcare.

The industry is calling on the government to help. Vivergo says it needs temporary financial support but that the government must create a regulatory and commercial environment in which it can thrive.

It says rules that award double subsidies to companies that use waste product in their bioethanol must be changed. At present, these rules are being used by US companies that make ethanol from Uldr – a by-product of processing corn. They argue this is not a genuine waste product.

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Another option is to grow the market. Industry leaders are calling on ministers to increase the mandated renewable fuel content in petrol from 10% to 15% and for an expansion into aviation fuels. That would allow British companies to carve out a space.

The government has been locked in talks with the company since June.

It said: “We will continue to take proactive steps to address the long-standing challenges it faces and remain committed to a way forward that protects supply chains, jobs and livelihoods.”

However, the time for talking is almost over.

Mr Hackett said he had no idea how the government would respond but he was firm with his stance, saying: “In times of global uncertainty, losing that energy certainty and supply from the UK is a problem.

“I think what they’re missing out on is the future growth agenda. We’re the foundation on which the green industrial strategy can be built. We make bioethanol that today decarbonises transport. Tomorrow it will decarbonise marine. It will decarbonise aviation.”

Lola’s Cupcakes, the bakery chain which has become a familiar presence at commuter rail stations and in major shopping centres, is in advanced talks about a sale valuing it at more than £25m.

Sky News has learnt that Finsbury Food, the speciality bakery business which was listed on the London Stock Exchange until being taken over in 2023, is within days of signing a deal to buy Lola’s.

City sources said on Thursday that Finsbury Food was expected to acquire a 70% stake in the cupcake chain, which trades from scores of outlets and vending machines.

Lola’s Cupcakes was founded in 2006 by Victoria Jossel and Romy Lewis, who opened concessions in Selfridges and Topshop as well as flagship store in London’s Mayfair.

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The brand has grown significantly in recent years, and now has a presence in rail stations such as Waterloo and Kings Cross.

The company employs more than 400 people and has a franchise operation in Japan.

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Lola’s is part-owned by Sir Harry Solomon, the Premier Foods founder, and Asher Budwig, who is now the cupcake chain’s managing director.

The deal will be the most prominent acquisition made by Finsbury Food since it delisted from the London market nearly two years ago.

Finsbury is now owned by DBAY Advisors, an investment firm.

A spokesperson for Finsbury Food declined to comment.

UK economic growth slowed as US President Donald Trump’s tariffs hit and businesses grappled with higher costs, official figures show.

A measure of everything produced in the economy, gross domestic product (GDP), expanded just 0.3% in the three months to June, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

It’s a slowdown from the first three months of the year when businesses rushed to prepare for Mr Trump’s taxes on imports, and GDP rose 0.7%.

Caution from customers and higher costs for employers led to the latest lower growth reading.

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