To think that there can't be that much difference between a Waitrose turkey and a Lidl turkey..?

[spanishwardrobe]

I've put in my Christmas shopping order at Waitrose and picked a turkey, the cheapest one I could find on the site, which was £55!

I've since been to Lidl and seen a same sized turkey for about £17!

Can they really be that different? And if so how!?

Has anyone ever taste tested turkeys? Am I just paying for a brand?

Totally agree. Tesco chicken is probably the worst I’ve ever known- it literally quarters in size when cooked and is left in a puddle of water. I now buy less but only buy from the butcher - absolutely stunning- no comparison.

A lot of this is in your head. All the supermarkets get their turkey from the same farms!

Why don't you get a turkey crown rather than pay more for meat you won't eat? I find it easier to keep them moist too as they don't need cooking for so long

I used to think this about weetabix but we’ve recently fallen in love with weetabix again in our house.

At the end of the month I replaced proper weetabix with Tesco own brand in the Weetabix box just because of storage space. Everyone asked what was wrong with them, I thought they were being fussy till I tried them.

It used to be goose and similar but turkey is cheaper and bigger.

We do goose or duck

No they don't.

HTH.

My friends working in the same factory and told me the same thing

Exactly. It’s food snobbery. The only difference will be for organic and corn fed or outdoor reared etc. All birds have to conform to British welfare standards. As a pp said, you’re all eating meat(so if it’s welfare you’re concerned with, try eating less meat!

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3945356/amp/Ever-wondered-Christmas-turkey-comes-One-woman-did-supermarket-showed-her.html
I’m posting this well aware it’s sponsored by Lidl but …

I used to assume a butcher's fresh turkey was better than a frozen one...... until I saw our butcher bringing in frozen turkeys to defrost in his store

I was really surprised, but suspect it's actually quite common, with so many customers wanting the same item at the same time

I saw a programme about Christmas shopping habits.

Before the 1970s, turkey was a moderately popular choice for Christmas (helped a long a bit no doubt by Charles Dickens) but beef, goose and chicken were similarly popular.

The marketing, starting in the 1970s and spearheaded by "bootiful" Bernard Matthews, was transformative; turkey became the absolute go-to

Edited to add: that period also coincided with supermarkets establishing dominance over shopping habits. So what they stocked and promoted as Christmas food held more sway than choosing your favourite roast from your local butcher. And Bernard Matthews products were easy for supermarkets to stock. Especially as homes were beginning to have freezers, and the frozen turkey was in the shops for the first time

I had a couple of Aldi chickens that would plaster the inside of my oven in fat and shrink to about half the size. I couldn’t work out why until I realised the fat and water were combining in the heat to make greasy fireworks.

I also recently bought a higher welfare chicken and couldn’t believe how different the body composition was - longer legs etc. It really made me think about the difference in the lives the chickens had.

People that think cheaper food tastes the same as more costly food are very fortunate. But they aren’t definitively correct, they just have a type of palate that is financially convenient. Tasteless turkey is cheap turkey. It’s a bummer but it’s true.

Wow thank you everyone for all the replies. Not sure I am any more decided now though haha!
I am thinking maybe a turkey crown from Morrisons...still very temper by the frozen ones from Lidl but such a risk when some people are saying how gross it was!

I'm not even that bothered about the turkey, much prefer the ham and will spend more on that, but I am hosting this year as well so need something reliable!

Also on the same things to different supermarkets. I can 100% tell the difference between the Lidl cereal (we get all our cereal from Lidl), it's way, way less tasty than the branded stuff, especially the weetabix. Luckily (unluckily?) my kids have only ever known the Lidl ones 😬

I'm poor and I can't taste the difference at all tbh.. my mum got them from waitrose
I just get them from wherever is cheapest.
If I had the money I'd be looking at welfare standards rather than taste.. as they all taste the same to me anyway!

In my defence tho the only meat I ever eat is at Christmas and then I eat fish on other special occasions.. majority of the time i eat vegetarian. So I feel I do my bit despite only being able to afford the cheapest turkey

I've had meat from Lidl that has shrunk to mere mouthfuls, it must have been more water than meat! I wouldn't take a chance personally so, although I have had reasonable meat from some supermarkets I usually stick to the butchers now

When I got mine from lidl it wasn't frozen.... I guess the frozen ones are the worst!

Factories that make the same product for different brands and different supermarkets use different recipes. This applies across the board - in the past 10 years I have worked with...

The company who make M&S shortbread (and also cheaper supermarket shortbread) and many branded biscuits - different amounts of butter used in the better quality ones is the main difference.

2 companies who make ham for all the supermarkets - different amounts of water, and different processes for reconstruction of the meat depending on who their end client is.

Several companies making ready meals for everyone from Aldi to M&S (same manufacturer often making for both ends of the premiumness spectrum). They make what is nominally the same product (Chicken Tikka Masala, for example), but different recipes - different spices, levels of cream, amount of chicken, sizes of chicken pieces, quality of chicken, etc etc.

A cereal manufacturer - they make branded and OL... to different recipes.

2 big dairy companies - both making branded yogurts and desserts and selling OL yogurts... again, different recipes.

When a supermaket enters into a contract with a manufacturer to produce a product, the recipe for that product is developed specifically for that supermarket, and significant testing and tweaking takes place (to make sure it's the right product for their customers and can be sold from manufacturer to supermarket at a price where the mftr can make a profit, and from supermarket to customer at a price where they can make a profit). The manufacturer can't change the recipe without going through a process with the supermarket.
There might be similarities between recipes for different products, but they are exclusive to the retailer they're being sold to (or the brand, in the case of branded goods).

Agreed. Aldi hula hoops are disgusting.

@BuzzieLittleBee yep that is exactly the case -

I've heard this as well actually from a couple of friends who worked in the factories that process both turkeys and geese for Christmas. They said it was exactly the same product, just at a certain point they'd start switching the packaging from M&S to Asda (for example). This was a few years ago, but they've both been very vocal in telling people not to waste their money since then! I can't comment as to where Waitrose birds come from, I suppose there's a possibility they source them elsewhere.

I'd always thought that with meat you get what you pay for, but I think unless you actually go to a proper butcher there's no real guarantee.

Most supermarkets including Aldi and Lidl sell a range of turkeys. Aldi and Lidl usually have different free range options - there’s always a bronze option and usually “bronze plus” type option (can’t remember what this is). I’d rather have those than a basic Waitrose turkey.

Waitrose treat their farmers and suppliers best and have the best ratings for welfare and quality. If you can afford to buy their turkey then I absolutely would. It’s the most special celebration of the year after all.

If you can’t afford it then do what you can and I’m sure it will be amazing. For many people Lidl is the best they can afford and I completely understand that- and I’m sure they will have a fantastic meal too.

Clicked by mistake on riverford last year a d ended up with £100 turkey! The flavour was on another level.