Chip shop favourite, the spice burger is under threat of extinction as its manufacturer goes out of business.

The spice burger, a mysterious blend of beef, onions, cereals, herbs and spices coated with a crisp golden crumb, has been on the market since the 1950s. However, in the face of tough competition from foreign rivals, Walsh Family Foods, the manufacturer of the spice burger and a range of other frozen foods, has gone out of business.

Manager of Leo Burdock Fish and Chips Darren Salmon says the demise of the spice burger will be a big loss for chip shops.

It’s a bad day as it’s actually a big seller for us.

Modern freezer technology means there are still stocks of spice burgers in some chip shops. When these run out one customer says,

I’ll try and get a recipe and make it myself.

One emigrant, home for a holiday with her German husband, tries a spice burger for the very first time. She is sorry it could be the last time to taste the patented, secret recipe. Her husband is also impressed with the Irish delicacy.

When Walsh Family Foods went into receivership, 50 people lost their jobs.

It will take a buyer with a spicy palate to bring this burger back from the brink.

An RTÉ News report broadcast on 18 June 2009. The reporter is Tadhg Enright.