As mentioned above, for a cash sale for the regular joe soap, like me, I wouldn't reclaim the VAT, but for certain items it would still be cheaper to pay the VAT at the cash&carry prices.
Ronan, I'm pretty sure C&C's have moved on from that slightly. You no longer need to buy 100 tins of beans, etc as they usually allow you to split packs. So you can still buy one, or more tins, for the same prices as you would the 100, the price just gets divided by 100. (note : for most items this is the case)
I am one of those who believe we should all be allowed into cash&carrys, as they simply aren't the way they used to be at one time.