Rotisserie chicken to be hit with VAT "This makes the rules far more black and white," said one tax expert. "The changes will apply VAT at the standard rate to all food which is at a temperature above the ambient air temperature at the time that it is provided to the customer," said HMRC. It said that pies, pasties and "rotisserie chicken products" will now be subject to VAT, provided they are sold hot. It said that between 2,000 and 3,000 businesses will be affected by the change. The tax will not apply to freshly baked bread, as this is not normally consumed "on the go." Stephen Coleclough, tax partner at PwC, said that the change will "impact people who buy their lunches on a daily basis." "Office workers will be hit with a 20 per cent hike in the cost of their lunch," he said. A Greggs spokesman said: "We do not believe that our freshly baked savoury products should be subject to VAT and we will be making strong representation to the Government regarding the proposed changes."