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  Actually Howard, the rules are about the intention, not the result. If it's intended to be eaten hot straight away, there is VAT. If it's intended to be taken home and reheated, there's no VAT. Example: if you buy a chilled takeaway curry from TESCO it's zero rated because you are expected to reheat it at home. The same items bought hot from Curry Garden will be taxed because it is intended to be eaten still hot. If it gets cold on the way home and you have to reheat it anyway, that's just tough. There's another key clause in the existing law: anything supplied 'by way of catering' is taxed.
  
  Additionally anything requiring further 'processing' before being eaten is zero rated. This leads to more anomalies. A bag of peanuts bought from a shop is taxed because it's snack food, but a bag of pistachios is not. Why? Because the pistachios require further processing (shelling) before you eat them. But if I sell them over the bar they're both taxable because I am a catering outlet.
  
  Everything clear? Actually I think shops like Greggs could get round it by selling hot items wrapped in sealed cellophane wrappers with re-heating instructions on them. Then they could show an intention that it should not be consumed hot straight away and it just happens to be hot because it is so fresh. If the customer chooses to rip it open and devour it immediately, it's not the shop's fault.

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