A fish and chip shop in Salisbury plans to add cheaper alternatives to its menu to help customers through the cost of living crisis.

Britz Fish and Chips, which has served Salisbury since 2004, has been hit by the cost of living crisis but is weighing up options to keep customers. 

Helen Houghton, 56, director of both Britz in Salisbury and Swindon, said the cost of cod has increased by "40 per cent", adding: "We can't pass that cost onto a customer.

"We've made cuts here and there on the rota but we've noticed that if there's a queue of people we'll lose customers that way."

Mrs Houghton said the current cost of cod and chips is "about £7.50", and she wants to keep this under £10 because Britz is "part of a community".

To keep prices reasonable, Mrs Houghton is sampling cheaper fish, such as coley. She added: "Never in all the years I've been in this industry did I think I would have to do this. 

"We'd add the cheaper option to our menu and carry on selling cod too."

Plans are also in place to add a plant-based alternative in a bid to attract more customers to Britz.

Earlier this week suppliers warned that the numerous heatwaves this summer has hit UK potato crops and prices are expected to rise this month.

Read more: Fish and chips one-week price hike warning after UK heatwaves

The cost of some fish products rose by 20p earlier in the year and Mrs Houghton said she's seen "a small drop in customers", adding: "Even though our turnover hasn’t dropped massively, because everything has gone up in price, we’re worse off."

Previously, a 12.5kg block of oil cost £22. Mrs Houghton said it now costs her £28 and she's still working out how increased gas and electricity bills will impact the business.

Mrs Houghton is "looking after" staff who have bills and rent to pay by prioritising them on shifts at Britz. Teenagers and weekend staff are still scheduled to work busy shifts.

"The team work really hard to serve as quickly as possible but they can only do so much."

The new menu is expected to launch at the end of September once it has been sampled.

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