The price of fish and chips has nearly doubled since 2019, with chippies grappling with the soaring cost of cod and haddock. Customers paid an average of £11.17 for the beloved takeaway in March this year, up from £10.28 a year earlier, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). This marks a sharp increase from 2019, when the average price was just £6.48.
Rising Costs of Fish and Energy
The cost of haddock and cod has risen dramatically amid the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Iran. ONS figures show the average cost of fresh and chilled cod, haddock, hake, and pollock has increased by 22 per cent, from £21.06 last year to £25.73 this year. A 45lb (20kg) box of cod that cost £110 in December 2024 surged to £330 in March 2026—a 200 per cent increase, shop owners reported.
Energy costs have also spiralled since the start of the war in Iran, with oil prices reaching their highest level since 2022 at the end of April. This has added further pressure on fish and chip shops, which rely heavily on deep-fat fryers.
Alternatives to Cod and Haddock
Shopkeepers have previously warned that “people’s mindset is going to have to change” as chippies seek cheaper alternatives to cod and haddock to stay in business. Andrew Arnold, who runs Railway Street Fisheries in Pocklington, near York, told the BBC he believes customers will see more alternatives, including Norwegian pollock, on menus.
“The traditional fish and chip shop is going to go, if we don't diversify and do different things,” he said. “I can sell pollock at £10.50 and still make a reasonable profit on it.”
Conservation Concerns
In April, customers were urged to stop eating UK-caught cod, as conservationists warned of a worrying population decline. The Marine Conservation Society downgraded all cod caught in British waters to the worst possible rating, stating that the population was “at dangerously low levels” and there was “no plan in place to help it recover.”
Cod populations have been declining since 2015, largely due to overfishing, but also worsened by rising sea temperatures. In September 2025, scientists warned fishermen would need to catch less cod in British waters to protect the species. The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), a Denmark-based independent body that advises the government on managing fish stocks, found the cod population in almost all of Britain’s waters was so depleted that none should be caught next year for the species to recover.
