A woman has vowed to ditch meat altogether after finding more than she bargained for inside her Lidl roast chicken.
Last Sunday (6 February), Mercedes Checkley purchased a seasoned bird from her local Lidl for £3.99 and set out to make a roast dinner for her pals.
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Everything was going to plan up until Mercedes had to carve the meat, which is when she was confronted with an entire chicken foot hiding inside the animal’s body.
The 25-year-old was left vomiting and feeling faint, as she says the incident has put her off meat altogether.
Mercedes, who works as a team leader in a care home and lives in Bedford, said: "I honestly didn't even process it at first.
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"My housemate heard me making a weird noise and she knew something was wrong.
"I think it was the shock. At first, it was disbelief and almost funny because I was shocked but then reality set in and I went very faint and was physically sick.
"I haven't eaten since and I'm now really put off meat.
"I am gutted because a roast dinner is my favourite meal and one of my safe meals as I have bowel disease so this incident has created a fear of meat and I'm quite limited to what I can eat as a result."
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Following the incident, Mercedes has barely been able to eat.
She said: "The others ate the vegetables, roast potatoes, honey roast parsnips, pigs in blankets, cauliflower cheese and Yorkshire puddings that I'd made to go with the chicken.
"I had a few parsnips and some cauliflower cheese but that was all I could stomach as I felt physically unwell.
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"I will absolutely never eat meat again. Every time I've been in my kitchen since it happened, I gag."
Mercedes has issued a formal complaint to Lidl who have contacted the supplier of the chicken and have told her to expect a response in the next 10 days.
A spokesperson for Lidl said: "We were very sorry to hear of this matter, as it is never our intention for a customer to be dissatisfied in any way.
"We work very closely with our suppliers to ensure that the fresh meat we offer is of the highest possible quality for our customers.
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"We were therefore disappointed that our expected high standards have not been met on this occasion.
"Following contact with our customer services team, the matter was escalated to our Quality Assurance department and our supplier to be fully investigated.
"We are in direct contact with the customer and will update them on the final outcome."
Topics: UK News, Animals, Food And Drink
Abbi Murray