Boy finds lizard in Tesco loaf of bread

A family say they got a little extra when they bought a loaf from Tesco – a dead lizard. Horrified William Evans, 10, from , Hawkchurch near Axminster, Devon, found the creature while he was eating his breakfast. He shrieked so loudly it brought dad Marcus running from upstairs at their Wych Court home. “The poor little lad was absolutely traumatised by it,” he said. “He went to take a slice off for some toast, turned the loaf over and found the lizard stuck on the bottom.

“It was one of Axminster Tesco’s baked in-store multi-grain brown loaves. The lizard had not been cooked so it must have got into the packaging and died there. You could see the impression of its body in the bread so it must have been warm when he got in.” William said: “I was making some toast and cut off a slice when I saw something that looked like a leaf. So I took the wrapping off and found the lizard inside. It certainly put me off my toast! It was about two to three inches long.”



Mother Clare said the only positive note was that he hadn’t sliced through the end with the lizard on it - and unwittingly eaten it. “That would have been even more distressing,” she said. Mr Evans said they had contacted Tesco’s customer service department who had told him it was impossible for a lizard to get in one of their loaves because of their high level of hygiene “I am surprised they didn’t tell me ‘every little helps,” said an unimpressed Mr Evans.

“They have asked me to take it into the manager but I am thinking of contacting environmental health officers. We are keeping the lizard and loaf in the fridge for evidence.” A Tesco spokesperson said: “We have conducted a thorough inspection of the bakery area as well as the rest of the store, and we are confident that our robust procedures mean that there was no food safety risk to the product whilst it was within the store. If the customer would like to return the product, packaging and proof of purchase to us, we will be able to investigate further.”