UK families gobble up smaller turkeys for COVID-19 Christmas

Coronavirus restrictions on large gatherings are leading UK turkey farmers to think small

Last updated: October 21, 2020 | 07:54

AFP and Compiled by Christian Borbon, Senior Web Editor

2 MIN READ

1/11

Squabbling over a treat of apples in autumnal sunshine, Mark Chilcott's feisty turkeys look pretty hefty. In fact, they're a smaller breed destined for downsized family dinners this Covid Christmas.

2/11

Chilcott, a 58-year-old organic farmer, prizes quality over quantity at his mixed farm of 440 acres (180 hectares) in Dorset, southwest England.

3/11

In the spring, as the coronavirus pandemic took hold, he anticipated no let-up to government curbs on how many people can mix indoors through the end of the year.

4/11

So he opted in April for smaller hatchlings from the "bronze" breed of turkey, favouring hens over the larger male stags, and a shrunken flock of 1,200 birds compared to the 1,500 he reared last year.

5/11

The hens will reach about 5-6 kilograms (11-13 pounds) in weight - half that of bronze stags, and one-third of the supersized supermarket turkeys which are the centrepiece for traditional British Christmas meals.

6/11

Chilcott says that is still plenty for a gathering under the government's "rule of six" in parts of England where households are still allowed to mix.

7/11

Restrictions are fast evolving, and many more families will likely be forbidden any visitors by December if infection rates remain high or rise further.

8/11

"If we run out of small sizes, then people have to have crowns or joints or half turkeys," the farmer told AFP after tossing fruit to his raucous black flock, a change on their usual diet of grain pellets.

9/11

"But we expect to sell out easily this year. Demand's really quite good... as far as sales go, we're ahead of last year."

10/11

Other farmers who took the wrong bet, hoping for restrictions to relax by the festive season, risk being saddled with oversized turkeys that could leave smaller family groups bloated with post-Yule curries and sandwiches.

11/11

British Poultry Council chief executive Richard Griffiths recommends those suppliers slaughter and freeze their birds earlier, before they have grown to full size.

Get the latest news and updates straight to your inbox