"It’s time for fish and chip shops to become more sustainable!”

That’s the message for National Seafood Week from The Elite Fish & Chip Company, the Lincolnshire-based and family-run fish and chip chain that currently runs four out of the five sustainable chippies in the county.

The Elite is Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified, meaning it has direct links with the fishing vessels it receives its fish from and works with suppliers to make sure customers’ cod, haddock and other fried favourites are caught from fishing stocks that are sustainable.

Now, the Tweedale family is calling on the rest of Lincolnshire to follow suit as a recent report on BBC Look North has revealed that only five chippies in the county carry the certification. The Elite runs four of these restaurants and takeaways, two in Ruskington, and one in Sleaford and Lincoln.

Rachel Tweedale, Manager at the Sleaford restaurant, said: "We firmly believe that remaining sustainable is key to ensuring we are able to serve the nation’s favourite dish long into the future. We only use fish and seafood that comes from controlled and regulated fishing grounds and we are very surprised to hear that we run four out of the five locations in our county that carry the blue fish mark. This is the sign that what you are eating is fresh and responsibly fished and can be trusted.”

The Elite has been MSC-certified since October 2015 and has retained its status ever since, supporting the MSC’s campaigns via social media and information displayed in its restaurants and takeaways. The MSC produces regular updates as to which grounds are sustainable to fish and provides a vast amount of information on its website.

Rachel added: "We take this mark very seriously and a lot of what we use it for is customer education, particularly among young diners. It’s a great way to show kids where their meal has come from and why we only get it from certain sources. We have had a kid’s activity pack in the past with plenty of facts on fish and seafood included and we’re about to release another one with even more information packed in.

"We would strongly recommend any fish and chip establishment to get on board with the MSC. Even restaurants that serve fish or seafood can get involved. If you know where your fish has been caught, you will have more confidence in selling it to customers and making your mark.”