Business

Covid-19 lockdown: Fish and chip shop closures sting potato and fish suppliers

19:02 pm on 7 April 2020
Hamish Cardwell, Senior Journalist

It's a cherished tradition - the Friday fish and chip run - but right now the industries that supply it are taking a battering.

Fish and chip shops are closed under the Covid-19 alert level four lockdown. Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon

New Zealand produces 500 million kilograms of potatoes each year and half of that ends up as frozen chips with the vast majority being sold to takeaway shops and restaurants.

Potatoes New Zealand chief executive Chris Claridge said people making do by whipping up their greasies at home had increase its supermarket sales, but that was nowhere near enough.

''That hasn't made up for a drop in demand from the hospitality sector in the food service sector, which has essentially gone to zero.''

Claridge said without the chip shops and restaurants, growers would have to look at cutting back planting which could hurt the industry long-term.

Right now it is unclear what the rules are for fish and chip shops under level-three restrictions.

Claridge said he wanted the chippers to be allowed to reopen as soon as the alert level drops.

"Because that allows people … to get access to hot chips in your suburban, local fish and chip shop.

"It's local, it's easy walking distance, they can take orders by phone. Having those sorts of outlets available for the industry is crucial for our long-term function."

A closed fish and chip shop during the Covid-19 alert level four lockdown. Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon

The $1.8 billion-a-year seafood export industry has also taken a massive hit with disruptions to international trade.

Seafood NZ chief executive Jeremy Helson said demand for seafood here had dropped significantly as well.

"I can't put a figure on it at this stage but it's certainly pretty significant.

"Obviously, a lot of wholesalers that sell direct to the public have been hit by this … fish and chips and of course, the restaurant trade."

Lulu and her husband own Islington Fish and Chips in Christchurch.

She said thankfully their rent was cheap and it was just the two of them working in the shop, so they would be able to weather the shutdown.

"We're … enjoying the time to have a rest."

But she said the larger stores with more staff might not make it through.

"We have a friend and he's got quite a lot [of] people [who] work for him.

"[It's] going to be very hard for him."

Restaurant Association chief executive Marisa Bidois said in a statement that one in five hospitality businesses would close permanently because of the coronavirus pandemic, with half likely to be wiped out in the tourist hotspots.

Bidois said her understanding was that takeaway joints could operate under level three. She said talks were underway with officials about what exactly the rules would be for the hospitality sector when the country moved out of the alert level-four lockdown.

The Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment said in a statement that decisions about how the country exited the lockdown had not been finalised yet.

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