Is fish and chips too expensive for Brits?

Britain’s most popular dish is more expensive than ever thanks to cost-of-living price inflation. The humble fish and chips takeaway has been a staple of British households since its introduction in the 19th century. But with fish, potato and oil prices spiking in recent years, it’s no longer a reliable cheap eat.

New data from Britain’s Office of National Statistics (ONS) shows that fish and chips has had the steepest rise in prices of the UK’s most popular takeaways. In the past five years, the average price for a portion of the dish has increased by over 50%.

Across the country, the average price of fish and chips has risen to £9.88 (€11.70) from £6.48 (€7.67) in July 2019, an increase of 52%.

Compared to other takeaway options, it’s the highest rise over the past half decade ahead of kebabs (44%), chicken and chips (42%), pizza (30%), Indian (29%) and Chinese (29%).

According to a recent YouGov poll, fish and chips is the second-most popular dish in the UK, behind just chips on their own. Introduced to the UK by Spanish and Portuguese Jews who had emigrated from the Netherlands, the meal became increasingly popular in the 20th century and was one of the few foods not subject to rationing during the Second World War.

But the UK icon has been subject to steep rises in costs before it can reach British plates. Fish has risen in price, in part due to a 35% import tariff on Russian seafood after 2022. Potato prices have also risen due to small crop yields across Europe and increasingly highly paid UK farmers.

Another factor in the rise of fish and chips prices is energy. Both the oil for frying and the power required to run those fryers has increased significantly over the past five years. In 2022, the price cap for energy increased by 54% by Ofgem, the national energy regulator.

Although fish and chips is still a massively popular British dish and international icon of the country’s food culture, it’s not necessarily always the most popular dish that Brits enjoy.

Back in 2011, a survey found that the most popular British dish was the chicken tikka masala. The curry was invented in Glasgow by Ali Ahmed Aslam by combining Indian spiced chicken with Campbell’s condensed tomato soup.

Aslam died in 2022 at the age of 77 in Glasgow, Scotland.

A recent survey found that Italian food is the most popular foreign cuisine to Brits, followed by Chinese and Indian. That said, while 87% said they liked Italian food, 91% still said they enjoyed British food – including dishes like fish and chips.

This year, we reported on the world’s oldest man – British 111-year-old John Alfred Tinniswood – who said that his secret to longevity was “luck, moderation and regular portions of fish and chips”.