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Will turkey stand triumphant?

Posted in General, Mel Varley, Latest reporters' blogs November 19th, 2007 by Melinda Varley

Perhaps ‘tis is the season, but it seems that no one is making a big deal about the recent outbreak of bird flu – is it that we are all too set on having a roast turkey as our Christmas centre piece?

Camelot has just released a new ad campaign for its Christmas scratchcard featuring turkeys. Some could argue its bad taste, but most wouldn’t even bat an eyelid. After all, it’s Christmas - and nothing, not even an outbreak of avian flu can stop us from cooking up the bird.

Earlier this year, a bird flu outbreak threatened Bernard Matthew’s turkey farm and his reputation. The company’s profits soon plummeted by 40 per cent as the press jumped all over the story, spelling disaster for the turkey producer.

However, Christmas is different and somehow it seems that this case of bird flu isn’t being taken quite so seriously.

Today the newspapers were speculating that the cost of turkey’s this Christmas would increase in light of the outbreak and now producers are fearing a shortage. It could be a golden opportunity to change the traditional Christmas dinner.

Will the turkey industry need a consumer reassurance campaign to restore confidence in the bird or have we failed to notice as the brand names in the frame are not as well known as Bernard Matthews’?

To read the news story related to this blog, go to mad.co.uk