New E. coli alert: Lidl chicken contaminated with faecal bacteria, listeria and drug-resistant superbugs including MRSA, claim campaigners

More than half of Lidl chicken is ‘riddled’ with potentially deadly drug-resistant ‘superbugs’, researchers have found. 

Results showed 23 of the 40 products analysed were positive for MRSA and extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL), bacteria that no longer respond to antimicrobial treatment.

Diarrhoea-causing bug E. Coli was also recorded among 19 of the chickens bought from UK stores. 

The retailer argued it had not itself recorded any ‘deviations outside of legal levels’, with no concerns flagged by regulatory bodies. 

The results also do not imply a specific health risk for consumers.

But animal welfare charities, who commissioned the research, today labelled the results ‘unacceptable’ and called on the poultry industry to curb its use of antibiotics. 

Results showed 23 of the 40 products analysed were positive for MRSA and extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL), bacteria that no longer respond to antimicrobial treatment. Diarrhoea causing bug E. Coli was also recorded among 19 of the chickens bought from UK stores

The retailer argued it had not itself recorded any ‘deviations outside of legal levels’, with no concerns flagged by regulatory bodies. Bur animal welfare charities, who commissioned the research, today labelled the results ‘unacceptable’ and called on the poultry industry should curb its use of antibiotics

Cóilín Nunan, the policy and science manager for Alliance to Save our Antibiotics, a coalition of animal welfare groups, told The Times: ‘Fast-growing breeds of chickens should be phased out. 

‘They have much worse health and welfare and are more likely to need antibiotic treatments. 

‘It is completely unacceptable to be using life-saving medicines to prop up chicken farming with poor management practices.’

All 40 products, bought by campaign group Open Cages, were sold in five stores in Manchester, Birmingham and London under Lidl’s flagship ‘Birchwood British’ chicken brand.

The samples included whole roasting chickens, packs of thighs, drumsticks and breast meat.

It was then packed into cooler bags and sent by refrigerated lorry to an undisclosed laboratory in Germany.

Researchers found 12 products were also harbouring listeria — which can cause a fever, sickness and diarrhoea. 

The report, however, does not include full test results from each poultry item, including levels of the pathogens allegedly present and whether they fall within or outside of legal limits. 

Neither were any details given on when in the products’ life they were tested and the use-by-dates of the chicken.  

Connor Jackson, the co-founder of Open Cages, which is lobbying to end factory farming, said: ‘There is no specific benchmark on what is too high. But everybody agrees they need to be reduced. 

‘The point of these findings is they are extremely high.’

Drug-resistant infections kill an estimated 1.3million people a year globally, with the figure projected to rise to 10 million by 2050 if no action is taken.

Multidrug-resistant bacteria can spread from animals to humans through the food chain but, due to commercial sensitivities, data on levels of antibiotic-resistant bugs in food is not made widely available. 

Use of antibiotics in British farm animals, however, has fallen in recent years, with sales down 59 per cent in 2022 compared with 2014. 

The ‘free-range’ egg farms in Leeds, Powys and Leicestershire all supplied to major supermarkets across the UK, including Sainsbury’s. Pictured, hens cramped together inside one of the sheds at the farm in Powys

In some cases, the horrific conditions made the hens distressed causing them to lose feathers and exhibit behaviours towards each other including bullying, aggressive pecking and even cannibalism. Pictured, a freezer full of dead hen carcasses at the farm in Powys

The test findings are not related to recent E. Coli supermarket sandwich recalls, which has seen more than 200 Brits struck down with the Shiga toxin-producing E.coli (STEC), a rare strain of the bug. 

Lidl said the tests involved just a small sample of raw, uncooked meat tested outside of UK guidelines.  

A spokesman for the supermarket told MailOnline: ‘Food safety is a priority for our business and all products are subject to extensive quality controls throughout the supply chain. 

‘We work closely with our suppliers and a multitude of industry partners, aligning our policies with the Responsible Use of Medicines in Agriculture Alliance (Ruma) and the Food Industry Initiative on Antimicrobials (FIIA) to ensure the responsible and Ruma recommended use of antibiotics, while ensuring animal welfare remains a priority.

‘Our own testing shows that in the last 12 months there have been no micro-related deviations outside of legal levels, and no concerns have been raised to us by any regulatory bodies on this topic.

‘It’s therefore evident and extremely concerning that Open Cages continues to disseminate false and inaccurate information, with the apparent aim of garnering media attention and both scaremongering and misleading the public. 

‘If Open Cages has any real and verified concerns regarding the presence of pathogens in fresh British chicken, we encourage it to work with verified sources and share its complete findings with either ourselves or with the FSA for further investigation.’

It comes as five farms were stripped of their ‘RSPCA Assured’ status in March after an undercover investigation found hens living in ‘appalling’ conditions.

The ‘free-range’ egg farms in Leeds, Powys and Leicestershire all supplied to major supermarkets across the UK, including Sainsbury’s. 

Secretly filmed footage by Animal Justice Project (AJP) revealed that the tens of thousands of birds were living in dark and cramped sheds and were surrounded by the bodies and skeletons of dead hens. 

In some cases, the horrific conditions made the hens distressed causing them to lose feathers and exhibit behaviours towards each other including bullying, aggressive pecking and even cannibalism.

Latest stats show the average Briton consumes 35kg of poultry meat each year. 

To avoid food poisoning, people should make sure they cook chicken thoroughly, separate meat from other foods, keep it in the fridge and wash their hands and utensils after touching raw meat, according to the Food Standards Agency (FSA). 

Chicken should also not be washed because it may splash bacteria elsewhere in the kitchen, it added.