Northern Ireland chip shops left with no option but to hike the price of fish suppers

It’s predicted that the price of the popular order will rise significantly while some chippies could be forced to close as overheads become too great.

Terry Scullion, owner of The Merchant in Ballymena, said he was trying to keep the cost of a fish supper down, but it was unlikely he could continue without a price rise: “We are the cheapest probably in the north. We’re £4.80 for a single fish, £7.60 for a fish supper. We’ll try our best to keep it there, but if everything keeps going up we’ll have to put up the price.

“In a couple of years I could see the cheapest fish supper being a tenner, there’s no doubt about it.

“It will become more of a luxury you get at the weekends, a fish supper you could have had people going out two or three times a week, but it’s now a treat.”

Explained the rising costs, he said: “Our chips are all made from English Maris Pipers, they’ve all nearly doubled from this time two years ago.

“Fresh fish has all sky rocketed. We use a guy Paul Milligan from Ardglass.

“The packaging has went crazy. We’re using biodegradable packing, I think that’s why it’s so dear to tell you the truth. Polystyrene will be gone in a year or two, I don’t think you’ll be allowed to use it.

“We use superior beef dripping, it’s the dearest beef dripping you can buy. It’s doubled in a year.

“We were hit by Brexit and Covid – everything seems to keep going up and up.”

Colin Fleming from Beatties fish and chip shop on Tate’s Avenue in Belfast was aware of takeaway owners who are considering closure because of rising costs.

He said: “Packaging has practically doubled, your beef dripping and your lard has practically doubled, your electric costs, your energy costs they have doubled, it’s not a case of nearly doubled. It’s set to rise more. The only saving grace, and I’m scared to say it, is that the potato price has held quite well.

“I know different friends of mine in the industry who are thinking maybe it’s time just to wrap it up and move on.”

He added: “Anybody in the industry that is not moving prices or hasn’t done it, they’re going to go out of business. There’s no ifs and buts about it.

“The government helped us with a VAT freeze, that’s coming back to 20% in April, that’s going to decimate the businesses that are still there.”

Colin said they were selling fish suppers at Beattie’s at £8.40: “We had to do an increase before Christmas, at the moment we’re going to try and ride that out, but how long we can do that for I don’t know.

“It’s not a case of prices going up monthly or weekly, prices are going up daily.”

As well as running The Dolphin in Dungannon, Malachy Mallon is the NI regional director for the National Federation of Fish Friers.

He said the price increases facing fish and chip shops included cod going up 75% since October, packaging rising between 30 and 70%, vegetable oil increasing by 50% and beef dripping soaring by a massive 110%.

“Even the humble mushy pea is up 110%,” said Malachy, who prices his fish supper at £8.65.

“We work on low margins and rely on volume so we will feel the pain first.”

He said that many places were only able to stay open because of the VAT reduction: “A return to 20% in April will decimate the hospitality sector.”

Malachy said: “We work with government on health, employment and energy, we know our sector the best.They don’t seem to want to discuss taxation which isn’t right, we want to build back better.

“We can’t build back better if we are not here.”

He said that fish and chips from a takeaway was still a great value meal despite the difficulties faced by the industry.

“Cod in the supermarket costs more than steak,” he pointed out.

One NI chippy owner provided figures to show the price hike the industry was facing.

He said a 40lb box of fish was due to increase from £139 to £171 while beef dripping has risen to £19.18 having been £10.50 eight months ago.

He said the price of packaging was “through the roof” with fish supper boxes going from £10.99 for 100 to £16.

Another concern was rising gas and electric bills, which has previously been around £2,400 to £2,700 but in the past three months had been anywhere between £4,500 and £6,300.

“Coupled with not being able to get staff, we are actually thinking of going to a five day week and closing our two quietest days,” he said.

——— ———

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers — and consequently the revenue we receive — we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to newsletter.co.uk and enjoy unlimited access to the best Northern Ireland and UK news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.newsletter.co.uk/subscriptions now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Ben Lowry

Editor