Hundreds of jobs have been placed on the line at restaurant chains Giraffe and Ed’s Easy Diner as bosses prepare to axe a third of branches.

The business, which is owned by Boparan Restaurant Group (BRG), has announced plans to enter a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) to close 27 of its 87 restaurants.

BRG first acquired Giraffe in June 2016 from Tesco – which was followed by Ed’s Diner four months later.

It said that while like-for-like sales had improved at the brands since they were acquired, several sites remained unprofitable.

Tom Crowley, chief executive of BRG, said: "We have been examining options for the two brands for some time and the CVA is the only option to protect the company.

"The combination of increasing costs and over-supply of restaurants in the sector and a softening of consumer demand have all contributed to the challenges both these brands face."

BRG owns a number of other chains, including fish and chip restaurant Harry Ramsden, the upmarket Cinnamon Collection and US brand Slim Chickens.

It its most recently available accounts, Giraffe and Ed’s Diner, had annual turnover of £67.1 million.

However, in the same period, underlying losses came to £1.6 million.

The business follows in the footsteps of Prezzo and GBK which both entered company voluntary arrangements last year after reporting declining sales.

The Gaucho Group made the decision to axe its Cau arm back in July – however in September said it had secured a deal to save 750 jobs at Argentine steak house Gaucho.

Meanwhile Jamie Oliver was forced to inject £13 million of his own cash into failing restaurant Jamie’s Italian after revealing all 35 branches were at risk.

However, some parts of the food industry are booming.

Japanese chain Wagamama was sold to The Restaurant Group, the owners of the Frankie & Benny and Garfunkel’s restaurant chains, in a £559million deal in October.

The company said Wagamama had "consistently and significantly outperformed its core UK market."

It plans to expand the chain, which it says is well placed to capitalise on the trend for healthy eating.

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