The pandemic and Brexit have caused prices to soar. And now the Russian invasion of Ukraine is hitting the traditional British dish: breaded fish with chips. It is cooked with products partly imported from the two countries at war. In London, RFI met a seller of this typical dish.
With our correspondent in London, Marie Boeda
Ozi hands a plastic bag over the counter to one of his loyal customers. He runs a chip shop in the north of the capital, a blue and white tiled floor, with a British flag and two photos of the Queen as decoration.
In recent weeks, getting supplies has become difficult. He points to his menu hanging on the wall.
” If you look at the prices here, he said, I keep modifying them, I have no choice, I make no profit, otherwise. My clients complain. This is because our suppliers are raising prices. They don’t give us a chance. Either I buy at this price or I close. »
Fish and chips went from 9 to 11 euros in less than a month. Because sunflower oil, which is used to fry fish and chips, comes from Ukraine. The country is the largest producer in the world. As for the white fish used for the traditional British dish, 30% comes from Russia.
” The prices go up every day! Not once a week, every day, Ozi insists. My can of oil was 45 euros two weeks ago, it is 52 euros today. That’s a lot of money, before prices rose by one euro a year! Now they increase by eight euros every week. It’s the same with fish. »
The president of the fish and chips federation warns: within five years, half of British chip shops could close.
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