After weathering the Brexit and Covid-19 storms, thousands of Britain's fish and chips shops could be sunk by the war in Ukraine
Fish and Chip shop owner Pam Sandhu (4R) serves customers as they sit and eat lunch outside of Captain's Fish and Chips shop in Brighton on March 25, 2022. Britain's fish and chip shops have weathered the storm of Brexit and Covid, and are fighting the tide of rising inflation but thousands could be sunk by the war in Ukraine. (Credit: ADRIAN DENNIS / AFP)
Brighton, United Kingdom: They have weathered the storm of Brexit and Covid, and are fighting the tide of rising inflation. But thousands of Britain's fish and chip shops could be sunk by the war in Ukraine.
At Captain's, in the seaside resort of Brighton, on England's south coast, owner Pam Sandhu is normally not one to complain.
Yet the shelves of her large refrigerators are empty when they should be full of fresh white fish ready to be dipped in batter and deep fried, then served to hungry customers with piping hot chips.
Captain's Fish and Chip shop owner Pam Sandhu, shows the contents of a freezer before opening for business in Brighton on March 25, 2022. The shelves of her large freezers are empty when they should be full of white fish ready to be dipped in batter and deep fried, then served to hungry customers with piping hot chips. "With the war in Ukraine, there's no fish left, only a small amount," she told AFP. (Credit: ADRIAN DENNIS / AFP)
In ordinary times, Russia supplied between 30 and 40 percent of the fish sold in British fish and chip shops, mostly cod and haddock, said Andrew Crook, president of the National Federation of Fish Friers (NFFF).