ROTTEN MEAT SPOILS CHRISTMAS FOR FAMILIES

Disappointed Brits families have hit out at Tesco, Aldi and Morrisons after being hit with the stench of putrid meat as they unwrapped their Christmas turkeys.

People were forced to make last minute changes to their plans when they found their poultry was covered in mouldy green streaks.

Christmas can be a stressful time for people trying to pull off a delicious meal, so having to frantically Google and phone up shops was the last thing these families needed.

Dan Stratford was visiting family in Cambridge shire when his mum realized something was very wrong with their Morrison’s turkey, which was being stored in the

The chef in an interview said: ‘The smell was unbearable and the turkey was very slimy and discolored. Many scrambled to find replacements or just went vegetarian

Angry Aldi customers also complained about ‘oven proof’ bags melting on their turkeys ‘My parents spent an hour trying local small shops as couldn’t find any information online but rang a few places too.

‘We all ended up running around finding anywhere open to replace it and eventually found a Marks and Spencer’s.’ The branch at Whittles ford Services, 15 miles away from the family home, was found by Dan’s brother Shane and his fiancée Laura.

Even then the turkey was a small boned and rolled turkey joint rather than a full sized bird, leaving much less meat for Dan, his parents, two siblings and nieces and nephews.

Despite the upsetting and stressful ordeal, Dan, 35, from London, says his family still had an enjoyable Christmas overall. But other unhappy customers said their Christmases had been ‘ruined’ after putting their turkey’s straight in the bin.

Many shoppers felt cheated after being forced to scrape the plastic coated skin from the birds People’s kitchens were filled with a foul smell after opening packaging Peter Thomlinson said: ‘Well thanks Aldi for the chicken that has gone off before its date and smells horrendous.’ Chelly Carrier said: ‘Turkey is utterly vile! Thank you Aldi! ‘Chicken nuggets and cranberry sauce it is.

Feel really let down and not sure we can trust you again.’ Mary Hannam-Norris said: ‘We haven’t long opened our fresh Christmas turkey crown purchased from your store dated use by December 26. And it’s gone off! It stinks.

‘This is the first year I have hosted Christmas dinner and I am heartbroken to not have any meat to feed my family and guests. ‘Deeply disappointed. What poor quality.’ At least a dozen Aldi customers have complained that ‘oven proof’ bags shrunk and popped in the oven, coating their poultry in plastic.

Unhappy Aldi customers would prefer not to have an added coating of plastic on their meal Shoppers demanded refunds for their putrid turkeys

A few scraped off the plastic and turkey skin and carried on but others binned the entire bird. The problem seemed to have affected Aldi’s specially selected British free range bronze turkey crown, which the supermarket sold for £16 a kilo, setting back some customers around £37.

Customers insist they followed the instructions which required cooking in the bag at 160 degrees C for an electric fan oven, allowing 20 minutes per kilo plus 70 minutes.

Posting on Facebook, Ali Herridge said: ‘My turkey wasn’t off, well at least I don’t think it was as it told me to roast in the bag so didn’t get a chance to smell it properly. If you ate Christmas leftovers for breakfast, you’re not alone

What’s Christmas Day like for people who have to work? Postal worker finds child’s letter to Santa asking for ‘food for family’ and takes action ‘Only the bag clearly isn’t ovenproof and now I have plastic melted into the family Christmas turkey.

How has this won a Good housekeeping Magazine award?’ An Aldi spokesperson said: ‘We are sorry that, in a small number of instances, we did not meet our usual high-quality standards. ‘Customers can return any product that they are not satisfied with to their nearest store for a full refund, or alternatively contact our customer services department.’