Cornwall Council's food poisoning warning over defrosting turkeys at Christmas

Large meat joints should be defrosted in the fridge, not at room temperature, Cornwall Council has advised.

Cornwall Council has issued advice on how to defrost a turkey correctly ahead of Christmas Day.

As many will be thinking ahead to the festivities of 25 December, people are being warned to treat their chosen meat joint carefully, so as to avoid food poisoning.

The council is advising people to defrost their turkey in the fridge instead of at room temperature.

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In a social media post, Cornwall Council said: "If you’ve bought a frozen turkey, goose, duck or beef joint for Christmas, be sure to defrost it fully in the fridge, not at room temperature.

"Large meat joints can take around 48 hours to defrost, so place at the bottom of the fridge in a tray to avoid contaminating other food."

"Once it’s defrosted, eat within 24 hours. Defrosted meat should only be re-heated once."