Sunderland fish and chip shop owners urge people to 'support your local chippy' as rocketing costs push many to the brink

Fish and Chip shop owners in Roker have made a heartfelt plea for greater Government support and have urged the city’s residents to continue to support their local chippy to prevent an increasing number of businesses having to close.

A survey by the National Federation of Fish Friers at the end of April (2023) revealed a third of the country’s fish and chip shops could close due to escalating costs.

Len Lowther, who owns Pier Fish and Chips in Roker, said: “My costs have rocketed but there is only a finite amount that people in Sunderland can or are willing to pay for their fish and chips.

“My profit margins have been greatly reduced and there is only so much you can pass on to the customer before they won’t buy it. There are some days when we lose money and at some point your profit margin will no longer be viable.

“I’m fortunate in that I own my premises which reduces my overheads as I don’t have to pay rent. However, I know of a number of fish and chip shops which have had to close as they were no longer viable.

“I do fear for the future of the fish and chip shop industry as there is a real crisis at the moment.”

Len, 68, explained how in the last 12 months he has seen the cost of a 25 kilogramme bag of potatoes more than treble from £8 to £25 while his frying oil has increased from £13.50 for 12.5 kilogrammes to £23.

He added: “In the same period a box of fish has gone from £180 to £280 and you’ve also got the increased costs of energy and April’s rise in the living wage.

“In Whitby and Seahouses people are willing to pay around £15 for fish and chips but I couldn’t charge that here. I’ve put my prices up by £1 to £9.50, which as far as I’m aware is the cheapest around, but it obviously doesn’t cover the massive increase in costs.”

Len’s experience is replicated across the promenade at Downey’s Fish and Chip shop which has seen similar rises in the cost of potatoes and frying fat.

Owner Gareth Downey said: “In January the cost of a box of fish from my suppliers was £140 which went up to £240, although it has now come back down to £200. 

“We are an energy dependent business and you can imagine how much gas we need to run our fryers - everything seems to have doubled.

“I’ve had to put my prices up to £10.50, but this obviously doesn’t cover the costs. After all your overheads, we probably don’t make much more than £1 on a fish and chip meal.

“The charges of all of our suppliers have gone up and it seems it’s the people at the bottom selling the final product - us- that are the ones losing out."

Chip shop supervisor Helen Marr, 47, who has worked at Downey’s for seven years, added: “I do fear for the industry and a lot of fish and chip shops have had to close - particularly inland.”

A significant factor in the escalation of costs is put down to global factors, with the war in Ukraine - one of the world’s biggest producers of sunflower oil - impacting on both cooking oil and petroleum oil supplies.

Meanwhile, as part of the UK Government's sanctions against Vladimir Putin, a 35 per cent tariff was placed on all seafood imported from Russia, who used to supply around a third of the country's white fish.

However Len believes the Government could do more to help.

He said: “I understand global factors are difficult to control, but one thing the Government could do to help all small businesses is to reduce business rates.”

It’s a sentiment shared by Gareth and Helen who also suggested looking at putting a cap on the cost of the supply of staple ingredients.

However, all three were unanimous in the vital role of the public in ensuring the alluring smell of fish and chips continues to waft across Roker and other parts of Sunderland.

Helen said: “It’s a difficult time for fish and chip shops at the moment and if you want this great British tradition to continue then please continue to support your local fish and chip shop.”

Gareth added: “It’s really important to support your local fish and chip shop.”