Newspaper’s ‘disappearing fish’ claim panned

The United Kingdom’s National Federation of Fish Fryers (NFFF) is taking issue with a Daily Mail article that painted a dire picture of the future of wild fish stocks.

Titled “Why fish ‘n’ chips will be considered a rarity and a luxury by future generations,” the article, which ran on Monday, suggested that only the “very rich” will be able to afford to eat wild seafood in 10 to 20 years, and that “the rest of us” will consume exclusively “second-rate fish farmed in swamps and pens” or “reconstituted fish bites made from algae and jellyfish.”

The 1,150-word article blamed fisheries mismanagement, particularly the European Union’s Common Fisheries Policy, which it dubbed “a 40-year-old mess,” for depleted fish stocks.

The NFFF immediately fired back. “I strongly disagree that the depletion of cod stocks in European waters will see the end of Britain’s traditional fish and chips,” said Denise Dodd, the organization’s general secretary.

“We guarantee to our loyal customers that, far from disappearing, cod and chips and haddock and chips will still provide a nourishing affordable meal for years to come,” she asserted. “Throughout the UK nearly 300 million portions of fish and chips are sold each year keeping fish and chips our No. 1 takeaway meal. They are the healthier takeaway option, delicious and nutritious with no added ingredients.”

Last summer, Seafish reported that fried-fish sales were up by 15 million portions, and fish-and-chip shops, or chippes, represented just over half of fried-fish sales nationwide.

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