TAKEAWAY giants Deliveroo are employing a team to protect beachgoers from hungry seagulls.
The squad, nicknamed the ‘Chip Squad’ will patrol select British beaches after a spate of seagull attacks on diners eating food while they sunbathe.
Deliveroo’s ‘Chipwatch’ – so called because of all the takeaways chips are the seagulls favourite – is designed to help beachgoers enjoy their downtime without the interruption of greedy birds.
This summer 95 per cent of Brits are expected to flock to the UK’s beautiful beaches to enjoy the hot weather and the seagull deterrent crew will be there to help armed with reflective umbrellas, decoy hawks and a new seagull distracting track called ‘Bye Gull Bye’ by Deliveroo.
Popping up next week on Brighton beach (Friday 22nd July) and Scarborough beach (Sunday 24th July) beachgoers and holidaymakers can enter a ‘Chipwatch’zone on a first-come-first-served basis and enjoy their fish and chips in peace, without the threat of their meal being robbed.
With the new research from Deliveroo revealing that nearly half (44%) of Brits have been concerned in the past about eating outside due to a fear of seagulls swooping in to steal their precious food, the ‘Chipwatch’ zones have been created to give the nation the summer that it deserves, without the fear of daylight fish and chips robbery.
Aisha Jefferson at Deliveroo, said: “One of the biggest summer rituals is al fresco dining, especially on the beach, but seagulls can wreak havoc on your peaceful picnic.
If you’re worried about food-snatching seagulls, our Chipwatch crew will be on hand to protect you from having to share your food with our flying friends.
If the beach isn’t your thing but you still find yourself covering your snacks, we’ve curated a music track that will safely distract and deter seagulls from pinching your food.
It’s also a bit of a banger, which you can play via the Deliveroo Youtube or Spotify channel. Hopefully, it’ll be music to your ears, but not so much the seagulls’…”
Although The Hoff isn’t available to join the Chipwatch crew, the team will still embody the essence of the smash-hit TV show from the 90s, donning teal shorts and reflective jackets to boot.
Beachgoers will find the team patrolling the designated zones armed with propellers, reflective umbrellas and decoy hawks, all known to safely keep seagulls at bay.
Deliveroo has also worked with a gull expert and sound engineers to create a brand new audio track called ‘Bye Gull Bye’, which will provide the background music to the ‘Chipwatch’ zones to ensure a seagull-free experience further.
The track is also available to stream nationwide now on Youtube followed by a release on Spotify. It has been curated in collaboration with Dr Madeleine Goumas, a researcher of urban herring gulls from the University of Exeter, who advised on the curation of the track in a safe way for seagulls, whilst protecting diners at the same time.
Madeline Goumas, from the University of Exeter said: “This is a great initiative to help the public enjoy their Summer holidays without the threat of unwanted birds, all whilst not being harmful to them.
I partnered with Deliveroo to ensure the track was no harm to the seagulls and to use gull calls to ensure it is effective. Research supports the use of gull alarm calls for deterring gulls.
This is the sound gulls make when they spot a predator, and it tells other gulls to keep away. We hope this track will allow people to eat their food in peace.”