Fish and chip lovers have been urged to stop eating UK-caught cod, as conservationists warn of a worrying population decline.
The Marine Conservation Society downgraded all cod caught in British waters to the worst possible rating on Thursday, stating that the population was “at dangerously low levels” and there was “no plan in place to help it recover”.
In the organisation’s Good Fish Guide, which informs people how their seafood choices are impacting the environment, consumers have been told to opt for European hake or haddock instead.
Cod is one of the most popular seafood items in the country and is the fish most often served in British fish and chip shops, with the UK consuming more of the product than any other country.
The majority of MSC-certified cod consumed in the UK is Atlantic cod, which made up 83 per cent of all MSC cod sales in 2022-2023. Iceland, the Northeast Arctic and Norway have thriving stocks which are currently fished at sustainable levels, the MSC said.
Cod populations have been in a decline since 2015, largely due to overfishing, but also worsened by rising sea temperatures.
In December, food security minister Angela Eagle announced the government was slashing cod fishing quotas by 44 per cent.
The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, a Denmark-based fishery advisory body, recently warned the UK that the cod population in almost all of Britain’s waters are so depleted that none should be caught next year for the species to recover.
It advised fishermen to avoid catching fish in the English Channel, the North Sea up to Norway and the west of Scotland. The group has also previously advised against cod fishing in the Irish and Celtic seas.
Last month, an award-winning fish and chip shop owner warned that chippies would soon close if customers didn’t start to eat alternatives to cod.
Andrew Arnold, who runs Railway Street Fisheries in Pocklington, near York, said the price of the fish had become too expensive, with a 45lb (20kg) box of cod costing £110 in December 2024 now priced at £330.
Mr Arnold believes “people’s mindset is going to have to change” and suggests customers order cheaper varieties, such as Norwegian pollock, which he insists tastes just as good.
“The traditional fish and chip shop is going to go, if we don’t diversify and do different things,” he told the BBC.
