Squid could replace cod on fish and chips menus due to global warming, scientists warn

Rising sea temperatures mean squid is becoming more common than cod

Fish and chips could disappear from British menus and be replaced by squid and chips, scientists have said.

Warming seas around the UK mean cold water fish like cod and haddock are being replaced with warm water species like squid – raising the prospect of a fundamental change to the classic British dish.

Scientists at the government-backed Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) said people would have to adapt their diets to replace cod and other favourites with squid and warm water fish like sardines.

Dr John Pinnegar, who led the research, said: “UK consumers enjoy eating quite a limited range of seafood, but in the long term we will need to adapt our diets.

“In 2025 and beyond, we may need to replace cod and other old favourites with warm-water species such as squid, mackerel, sardine and red mullet.”

The warming sea temperatures mean cod and haddock, the fish most commonly used in the traditional dish, are moving further north in search of colder waters.

In their place, fish species and other sea life that were previously more at home in the Mediterranean are becoming increasingly common in British waters.

In 1984 Cefas, which is funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, found squid present at just one in five of its 76 survey stations in the North Sea. By 2014 that had risen to three in five.

At the same time, the number of cod in UK waters has plummeted as a result of overfishing and global warming. Almost 90 per cent of UK cod disappeared between 1971 and 2004 and stocks have been slow to recover.

Last year there were just 295,000 tonnes of cod in the North Sea compared to 1.3 million tonnes in 1971 - although this is an increase on the 124,000 tonnes recorded in 1994.

The changing nature of UK sea life is a trend scientists expect to continue.

Dr Pinnegar said: “Our models for 2025 and beyond suggest that seawater temperature may continue to rise in the future. As a result, UK waters will become more hospitable for some species and less suitable for others, with the overall result that most commercial species will move northwards..

Some British businesses are already taking advantage of the changing conditions, with the squid fishing industry having expanded rapidly in areas that previously focused on catching haddock and cod - a trend researchers expect to continue.

Dr Pinnegar said: “I would anticipate that currently small-scale fisheries targeting warm-water species such as squid, sardine and anchovy will continue to expand. They will probably represent a greater share of UK fisheries catches in 10 years’ time,”

The findings will be presented at the British Ecological Society’s annual meeting in Liverpool on Monday.