Turkey prices: Sheffield butcher admits situation is 'not good' but missing out not a disaster

Mike Kilner runs the shop on Twentywell Lane in Bradway, popular for it’s South African imports, and admitted he may be having to “close his books” for turkey orders as early as next week, due to supply issues linked to bird flu. He told The Star: “The situation is not good, I speak to my supplier every day.

“I normally take orders all the way until Christmas week, I’ve even had people come to me two or three days before Christmas for a turkey and I’ve managed to get them one, but this year that’s not going to happen. Anyone who thinks they can go out and buy a turkey two days before Christmas will be disappointed.”

Mike’s comments come following national concerns for the affect the current bird flu outbreak could have on turkey prices as we head towards the festive period. The chief executive of the British Poultry Council said around 600,000 of the 1.3million free range turkeys produced for Christmas have been lost.

Mike said he “can’t tell the customers a lot” about how much their turkey will end up being due to the uncertainty over supply, and admitted some price ranges across the industry have been “guess work”. He said: “Some people are trying to take advantage of the situation and adding lots to it which I think is unnecessary. They’ll be having people’s pants down.”

Despite this, he does expect the prices to go up, due to farmers having no insurance or compensation for birds they’ve lost. He said: “If the farmers lose 1,000 birds then they have to fund it. There is no compensation. It’s a very very tricky situation.”

Mike said he knows “people are panicking and understandably so”, adding “in a week or two weeks people are not gonna get their turkeys”. He did add “it’s not the end of the world” because more and more people every year are opting for lamb or beef for Christmas, which Mike expects will certainly be available.