Fish - with chips (From Bournemouth Echo)

Fish - with chips

7:54pm Thursday 7th August 2008 in

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IT'S not the usual fish and chips, but one aquatic business in East Dorset has gone to great lengths to stop its goods being turned into a takeaway.

Greenmann Aquatics at Three Legged Cross has decided to microchip its prized Koi carp after an overnight raid in July, which saw 10 examples worth £1,000 stolen.

Owner Lucie Mann said: "We've taken it as a positive attitude because it's been very difficult to actually do anything to combat the theft of Koi.

"It's gone on for a long time; there's lots of cases across the country.

"After we had ours taken we decided we needed to be pro-active."

Staff at the centre chip the fish onsite at a cost of around £15 each - small fry when they are worth £200-£500 a time.

Lucie added: "They can go up to several thousands and next year we expect to have more expensive ones. We've only just started and wanted to see how the market went."

Incredibly, the first batch of fish was stolen just a few hours after they went on sale at the start of July - the district council had rubber-stamped the centre's licence just a day before.

The idea is that other centres across the country can check incoming fish with a chip reader to make sure that they are not stolen. If they are, the owners can be traced. Police, the RPSCA and other organisations also have the readers.

Lucie said: "What we're hoping is that by taking these steps more people will follow in our footsteps."