Welsh public talk turkey in new survey

One in five Welsh people say that turkeys can fly while just over one in ten believes the bird originates from Turkey, a new survey reveals.

The NFU-commissioned poll quizzed over 150 Welsh people about their festive eating habits, how they choose a Christmas bird and how much they know about turkeys in general.

The results revealed that 20 per cent of Welsh people believe turkeys can fly with a further 13 per cent not knowing if this is true or not. Just over ten per cent of Welsh people think turkeys originate from Turkey while nearly half have no idea where they come from. Only 12 per cent know that a male turkey is called a stag.

NFU Cymru’s Poultry Board Chairman Tony Burgess, "It has been fascinating to find out how much our customers know about turkeys. One of the more interesting findings is that public opinion is split on the age-old question of whether turkeys can fly or not and although you are not going to see them flying south for winter, turkeys can actually get off the ground for a short distance.

"I am pleased to add that 71 per cent of the Welsh public will tuck into turkey as their main meal on Christmas Day, with 61 per cent saying they will buy fresh. It is also interesting that 43 per cent will buy from a butcher, directly from the farm or a local market. This compares to 46 per cent who intend to buy from a supermarket. The survey revealed what their biggest priorities are when choosing a turkey, 59 per cent of Welsh people plump for quality, ahead of price (30 per cent), which means they put quality above the price for this most important meal of the year."

The full survey results from England and Wales reveal that:

• People in the North East are least likely to eat turkey this Christmas as their main meal, with those in the North West most likely;

• Londoners are most likely to eat a fresh turkey on the day – people in the West Midlands are more keen on frozen;

• 39 per cent of people only eat turkey at Christmas but 80 per cent of people eat chicken at least once a fortnight;

• Other popular meats served up on Christmas Day include chicken, goose, duck, venison, salmon, ham and gammon.