Fish and chip shops in Aylesbury and beyond in danger of going bust due to Russian invasion

Industry experts fear Fish and Chips businesses in Aylesbury and beyond face a 'terrifying situation' if sanctions are imposed on Russian goods.

President of the National Federation of Fish Friers, Andrew Crook, fears for businesses if sanctions are put on fish from Russia.

Andrew said: "It's a terrifying situation we're facing at the moment. The high prices at the moment come down to a bit of a hangover after Covid.

"Energy and shipping costs have gone up. Wages have gone up. It's forcing the price of everything up.

"The fish and chip industry has always had quite a tight margin. Fish is a premium protein, it's as expensive as steak in the supermarkets, but our prices have always been low.

"I've never had as much fear for the industry as I'm having now. If we get a sanction on Russian fish we can expect costs to triple. It could cause fish and chip shops to go bust. I've already seen it happening.

"It's a very very scary situation but we have to do the right thing by Ukraine. We've got to let Russia know that what they're doing isn't acceptable, but it will be a heavy price to pay for the industry.

"Forty to 60% of white fish comes from Russian sources. It's a massive amount of fish that comes in."

The president went on to outline other financial pressures he and other fish and chip shop owners now face.

He added: "It's already terrifying. I'm 22 years in the industry and I've been through a lot of scares.

"But we've got a crisis on a crisis and now the rise to minimum wage and potential return to 20 per cent VAT. I've never seen anything like it, it's everything all at once. It's the most dangerous threat to the industry in 160 years.

"We are in a position where we need to have a huge jump in prices. Everyone's really worried. The VAT rise is going to put so many businesses under. It's not much of an existence when you're worried about bills all the time and it's the businesses that are doing everything right that are suffering.

"We're hoping the Government will listen to us [about VAT] but at the moment it's falling on deaf ears.

"I don't know if the Chancellor has a rabbit in his hat he's going to pull out in the budget. We used to be a nation of shopkeepers but it seems like we don't really count. 20 per cent VAT will be the straw that breaks the camel's back.

"It's going to happen very, very quickly. It's not a bright future."