Curry crisis talks to be held as supermarkets and immigration rules threaten restaurants

The future of curry houses will be discussed during crisis talks next month as cheap supermarket deals and immigration rules threaten the £4 billion industry.

Many traditional curry restaurants are struggling to survive, in part because of big supermarkets increasingly offering "takeaway" meal packs in the past five years.

Another problem has been immigration restrictions, which prevent non-EU chefs gaining visas to work in the UK if they are offered less than £29,570-a-year.

In addition, the children of many south Asian chefs who migrated to the UK in the 1950s and 1960s have pursued other careers, leaving the industry short of talented workers.

Foysol Choudhury, owner of The Verandah restaurant, said the competition being offered by supermarkets is unfair.

He said: "This rise in food technology has unfortunately reduced the number of visits curry-house customers make to curry houses.

"Competition is good for business but when the competition is unfair that is bad for business.

"This competition is unfair because curry houses are short of well-trained chefs who have not only traditional cooking skills but have a cultural understanding of the art of cooking the best quality curry dishes."

Mr Choudhury said customers could not get the same experience from a frozen supermarket meal as they would dining in a curry house, and some reviewers agree.

Sainsbury's, which invites reviews, has just one star for its £9 Indian Meal Box with customers complaining about "uninspiring and cheap ... tasteless sludge", and one customer insisting: "For another £2 I can get an amazing takeaway from my local Indian."

Supermarket leader Tesco offers two curries, pilau rice, naan bread and bombay potatoes for £7.50 in its Tesco Takeaway for 2 deal while Asda offers a similar pack for just £6 or two for £10.

Mr Choudhury, vice-chairman of the Edinburgh Mela cultural festival which takes place this weekend, and other curry house owners are lobbying the Government to make it easier for chefs to enter the country.

He said this would "ensure that this important £4 billon traditional food industry does not decline and be replaced by a frozen curry food industry".

The Home Office said top foreign chefs will continue to be welcome to work in the UK.

"But we also want to nurture much more home-grown talent and encourage young people in this country who want to pursue a skilled career," said a Home Office spokesman.

"This means the restaurant sector offering training to attract and recruit resident workers to meet their staffing needs.

"That is why we have been working closely with the Asian Restaurant Skills Board, who are developing and promoting scholarships and apprenticeships to help restaurants fill their kitchens with the best up-and-coming talent from the UK."

Around 150 curry-house owners will meet in Edinburgh next month as part of a series of televised crisis talks throughout the UK known as The Catering Circle.

There are more than 15,000 curry houses in the UK, according to The Catering Circle.