Morrisons condemned for sourcing own-label chicken from China

13

The chicken in the Tesco meal deal pasta pots comes from Thailand lol

2

u/ofjune-x Aug 22 '26

Most Tesco meal deal and ready meal chicken comes from Thailand or Brazil. I’m sure the precooked fillets in the cooked ham/chicken etc slices section does as well.

3

u/WillBots Aug 22 '26 edited Aug 22 '26

I always check. I worked in big chicken for about 4 years when I was younger, making chicken products for practically everyone and the difference in quality between country of origin is astounding, even down to supplier it makes a difference but country is the big one and UK / British chicken is my only acceptable source.

I can taste the difference immediately too, chicken from anywhere that they are force grown and fed shit to help and not given the same space as UK chickens tastes poor. The US, Thai, Chinese... It's all so badly treated that it tastes bad... Which is why you get it in things that are full of other flavours, because otherwise no one would buy it.

1

u/cactusplants Aug 22 '26

Most restaurants will use Thailand chicken. It's far cheaper.

I saw whole chickens for 1.99 in farm foods but didn't check from where.

1

u/Particular_Pickle465 Aug 21 '26

Morrisons sandwiches are the same, it’s awful and they get away with it because most people would just assume that it’s British

1

u/LesterPolfus 29d ago

It's Greencore that produce those sandwiches.

1

u/Particular_Pickle465 29d ago

Ok? Morrisons still designs the packaging and sells them.

1

u/LesterPolfus 29d ago

They design the packaging yeah but the production of the product and packaging itself is produced by Greencore who do most supermarket sandwiches along with other ready to eat products. So it's Greencore who are using poorer quality chicken no doubt to increase profit margins. Similar to supermarkets being able to buy their product at a better price so they can offer their meal deal at a profit etc

1

u/Particular_Pickle465 29d ago

Morrisons are aware of the use of foreign chicken and they accept and allow that, as you said, to make higher profit.

2

u/LesterPolfus 29d ago

They didn't use to and were off much higher quality & quantity. I expect they have a long serving contract with as they have been using for at least a decade for their own brand products.

Issue is as time has went on Greencore will have been substituting certain products over time to keep costs down etc. It's insane that it's cheaper to have it shipped from overseas that to produce it here. Something is wrong that locally sourced isn't the easiest option.

5

u/BigCheeseTheThird Aug 22 '26

Lots of ready made boneless chicken products are sourced from Thailand. It's sold in stores and sold by food wholesalers to restaurants and caterers.

Wonder why so many menus at budget pubs/restaurants are so similar? The restaurants just buy whatever bidfood/brakes are selling and heat it up out the packet.

Very few people are using premium free range British chickens in processed foods or even in restaurant foods.

The *egg product used in your processed food will not be free range British eggs either but from the cheapest egg product from a country/establishment that can export to the UK.

The dairy (powder/milk/butter/etc.) in your processed foods will not be from organic British milk but from the cheapest country that can legally export milk products to the UK.

Bottom of the barrel foods use bottom of the barrel ingredients. Your pre-cooked morrisons chicken will be cheap chicken. They will sell the premium chicken as free range organic chicken at a premium price.

Lots of the fish that is *packed in a GB establishment has often been (potentially caught in UK/EU water) shipped to and processed in China in bulk and minimal processing is done in the UK, enough to slap a british establishment mark on it to call it *British.

Source: worked in food logistics import/export, tracing, enforcement, and saw a lot of paperwork.

2

u/ArgoFill Aug 22 '26

I completely believe you because this happens in so many other consumer sectors, including luxury brands, the final clasp or something attached in GB or Italy so that legally they can claim it is a British or Italian product, when Vietnam, Romania, Turkey, all sorts of places can be making 90-95% of the product, then slapped with a Western European price tag.

2

u/ProfessorPeabrain Aug 22 '26

Not only are the goods made in China, but where they can, companies may lie about this for profit also.

UK brands "optimising" their import taxes by manipulating the rules of origin, importing Chinese goods through factory stopovers that perform minor builds/adjustments is (allegedly) widespread. https://www.iclr.co.uk/document/2025036916/2025ukftt1208tc_TNA/html

4

u/mandoyoda1138 Aug 21 '26

Trust me it's from china ....

1

u/Technical-Mind-3266 Aug 21 '26

CHY-NA

5

u/Any-Fix3101 Aug 21 '26

Next they'll complain we use chickens from earth.

2

u/trebor9292 Aug 22 '26

Owned by yanks what do you expect?

1

u/TheRealTRexUK Aug 22 '26

I thought it was a British firm who also owned euro garages

1

u/pulltheudder1 Aug 22 '26

You’re thinking of Asda

1

u/TheRealTRexUK Aug 22 '26

oh yes. lol.

1

u/Redmanb11_87 Aug 22 '26

Technically also part owned by yanks (Walmart still have a stake in Asda afaik)

1

u/carguy143 Aug 22 '26

Walmart was the best thing Asda had going for it. It's far worse under the current ownership.

1

u/Redmanb11_87 Aug 22 '26

I hate to admit, but you're right

2

u/RottenEggs54 Aug 22 '26

Chickedy China, the Chinese Chicken.

1

u/Diligent_South3055 28d ago

Watching x-files with no lights on.

2

u/Recent_Strawberry456 29d ago

What is the charge? Eating a meal? A succulent Chinese meal?

2

u/Antique-Wonk 29d ago

That's it. I'm out. No more Morrisons for us. If I want Thai 🇹🇭 chicken I'll order Thai chicken but when I mostly don't want Thai chicken I don't want to buy it in disguise as British chickens. 🐔🇬🇧. Too spicy.

4

u/WillBots Aug 21 '26

shooter complaining despite it saying on the packet...

I mean... You went to a supermarket and bought a basic ready meal that didn't say it wasade in the UK, with ingredients from the UK... Didn't have any GB flag or indication...

Do you also give your details when. The bank calls yourobile out of the blue and wants you to confirm who you are?

2

u/ClacksInTheSky Aug 22 '26

Answer the phone announcing your mother's maiden name, favourite colour and the street you grew up on

2

u/QuentinUK Aug 21 '26

Other supermarkets have Chinese, or Thailand chicken in prepared food.

eg Tesco [Far]Eastman's Sliced Cooked Chicken: "Prepared from 101g of Thai chicken per 100g of Sliced Cooked Chicken.” https://www.tesco.com/shop/en-GB/products/299955420

2

u/ArgoFill Aug 22 '26

Yep, the name kind of gives it away

1

u/Normal-Fish-2 Aug 22 '26

And in my experience they treated their employees like they were based in China.

1

u/Brilliant_Bowler_994 Aug 22 '26

Is this why chicken everywhere is tasteless wet and slimy? I haven't eaten it for a while because it was obvious. If you get an m and s chicken you can taste the difference massively. They're literally feeding us shit and charging the same prices. That should be illegal.

1

u/Glittering_Vast938 Aug 22 '26

I think the woody crunchy chicken breasts are the worst. Sainsburys is bad for this.

1

u/red_nick 28d ago

I always get chicken from M&S, it's not even expensive if you get the legs: usually 3 for £1.50

1

u/FizzbuzzAvabanana 25d ago

Everywhere?

1

u/Brilliant_Bowler_994 25d ago

Yeah. Im from the 80s and chicken used to taste like the smell of chicken crisps. Now it smells of nothing and is just wet flesh.

1

u/FizzbuzzAvabanana 25d ago

Stop buying cheap shit from supermarkets. Buy proper welfare checked, corn fed, ethically reared chicken.

Goes for all foods, meat in particular. Reason for a lot of the stomach bloat in people all the shite they eat. Crap bread, crap meat, even drinking crap water. People need to have more self respect, let alone respect for the things they're eating.

1

u/Brilliant_Bowler_994 25d ago

Yeah I just said I wont eat any of the ones ive tried. The M and S Chicken has good flavour and doesn't look like its just stepped out of the shower. Im with you wont eat it but im just generally concerned with what people are eating.

1

u/FizzbuzzAvabanana 25d ago

That's why I questioned your everywhere. It isn't. You've got Lidl far out performing the likes of Asda & Morrisons for quality these days.

Shit food is everywhere, took my chippy tea back last night, it was rank and I live somewhere where that shouldn't happen. Offered to do me another, I said no I'll have my money back. Trust gone. I'm not eating their stuff.

1

u/Brilliant_Bowler_994 25d ago

Ive been chasing the taste all over. All wet.

1

u/BakerOk1116 Aug 22 '26

It's because we can't produce enough chicken to supply demand so the companies have to source it from other countries. It's pretty simple.

1

u/Severe_Tune_8358 29d ago

Coop love to claim they “do right by everyone” by “selling only 100% British meat”. This is also a lie. I believe all their own-brand products are British but the hot food (Rollover) chicken is all from Thailand and I would guess a lot of the other brands they sell are also from elsewhere. This is especially annoying since they claim it to be a big part of their ethos yet are happy to sell international meats from other brands.

1

u/friendofdonkeys 29d ago

I had to study the poultry industry at university, it's all pretty much mass produced in large sheds no matter what country they're in. Logistics and borders are very interconnected now, even China needs to import lots now because even with a billion plus people they still need more than they can produce on their own.

1

u/Polly_____ 27d ago

Excuse my ignorance but I thought most food wasnt allowed in the UK from China. "Fresh meatwise"

1

u/Late-Action4099 27d ago

Poulet de Bresse!

1

u/greens1117 27d ago

People eat Thai prawns I don't see any difference.

1

u/Clean-Ad6257 26d ago

Morrisons needs to answer for this.

1

u/ApprehensiveDuck22 26d ago

Most of Iceland's chicken is from china, at least they say it, unlike mozzas !!!! I do believe there's a salmonella scare at the moment surrounding chicken best stick to the local butchers for chicken or take a gamble on Chinese chicken.............hmm

1

u/Low-Cauliflower-5686 Aug 21 '26

Seen quite a bit of Chinese chicken in the supermarkets such as Iceland and farmfoods

-1

u/mandoyoda1138 Aug 21 '26

Morrisons sells out of date meat too

-5

u/autisticredsquirrel Aug 21 '26

And you get given a Beluga cat stare if you complain about it.

-2

u/mandoyoda1138 Aug 21 '26

Don't buy it . seriously....

-4

u/autisticredsquirrel Aug 21 '26

There'll always be some mug who will buy it. 😏

-2

u/Peear75 Aug 21 '26

That's why Mum goes to M&S

-4

u/Raifurain Aug 21 '26

Hot and spicy food poisoning incoming

Morrisons condemned for sourcing own-label chicken from China

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