Thousands of fish and chip shops across the UK are at risk as households refuse to embrace three new fish varieties. With changing Atlantic fishing quotas and record-high cod prices, many takeaways have diversified their menus.
Alternative Fish Species Offered
More and more shops now offer alternatives such as hake, pollock, and monkfish. However, customers remain reluctant, according to George Morey, owner of Knight's Fish & Chips in Glastonbury, Somerset.
Mr. Morey told the BBC: "You will offer them a small taste of a different species and they'll go 'wow that's great, I love it'. But then you'll ask them what they want to purchase and they'll say 'I'll have the cod please!'"
Customer Loyalty to Cod
"They're religious - fanatical - about it, and willing to pay a premium because that is what cod is, a premium product. It's the white gold," he added.
Adam Papa, owner of Papa's in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, emphasised the importance of customer support: "The main secret is the support of our patrons, and my colleagues who are absolutely amazing, they've been the rocks of the business."
"Fish and chips is our traditional meal and it's never going to die. What we need is understanding that fish is very expensive and not as reasonably priced as it used to be five years ago. Just having their support for local businesses like ours is what it's all about. We've just got to get through this situation."
Mislabeling Concerns
The situation is compounded by fears that rogue chip shops are passing off catfish as traditional fish and chips to cut costs. The Chartered Trading Standards Institute stated that while mis-selling of fish is not widespread, "there are still some unscrupulous businesses."
Professor Stefano Mariani, who conducted DNA tests with colleague Catherine Perfect, said: "We used DNA barcoding to identify the species, and we found three out of the 10 samples were pangasius - often known as river cobbler on the market, a type of tropical freshwater catfish."
Mariani told the BBC: "In my experience with fish and chips, three out of 10 is quite a lot - I don't recall seeing this level of catfish."
Dean Cooke, food lead officer at the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, advised: "We would advise, in instances where the fish species is not specified, for consumers to request this information from the business. If they are not convinced that they are being told the truth, or that they feel that information is being withheld, they should contact their local trading standards or environmental health team."
