'Worst time' for fish and chip shops as costs soar

A Lincolnshire fish and chip shop owner has said he is struggling to stay afloat because of the rising cost of ingredients.

Ian Stead, who runs Steels Corner House Restaurant in Cleethorpes, said suppliers had been increasing prices by 10% each month.

Mr Stead, who has run the shop for more than 20 years, described the situation as "the worst time for the industry".

"We are not making any money and because of the cost of living crisis, we can’t put our prices up enough, because we know that our customers are struggling as well," he said.

"We are not expecting to make a profit this year at all, it’s just a case of breaking even and getting through and hoping things improve in the future."

Mr Stead said one of the biggest cost rises was the price of potatoes, which had gone up from £6 to £22 a bag.

Fish prices had almost doubled and at one point his electricity bill rose from £1,000 a month to £1,000 a week.

"That’s fallen back down again this year," Mr Stead said.

"But we are still paying double what we were two years ago and that’s a big cost to us."

Mr Stead called on the government to help by reducing the 20% VAT charged on takeaway meals.

He said he would have to raise prices for his food and hoped that customers would understand and would be "hopefully sticking with us".

“It is a worry for the future," he said. "It’s been about two years this has been going on for now and at what point does it end?

"We will keep fighting and we will keep going.

"This business has been in my family since the 1970s, we are just hoping that this situation doesn’t get any worse."

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