A Perth family's dinner plans quickly turned into a horror show after they unexpectedly came face-to-face with their roast.
Joel Downey purchased an uncooked roast chicken from an IGA in Carine on Saturday, however, the local soon discovered his chicken included an extremely shocking addition.
"The chicken had its head and neck still on it," he told PerthNow.
Photos taken by Mr Downey show the farm bird inside a disposable cooking tray, with the chicken's head and neck seen resting on the edge.
While chickens are often sold with head and feet in Asian supermarkets, the practice is exceptionally rare in Australia.
No Australian laws mandate chicken heads need to be removed prior to supermarket sale, however major supermarkets will remove body parts such as the head and feet due to customer preferences and hygiene reasons.
The clucking mad discovery was met with mixed reactions from the Downey family.
"I was so stoked to see the head still on, but my daughters were freaked out," Mr Downey said about the find.
Despite the unexpected face-off with their dinner, the family was still able to enjoy the poultry for their Saturday tea.
Mr Downey shared photos of the entire farm bird seasoned, head included, on top of their barbecue.
Once the chicken was hot and crispy, Mr Downey decided to take the opportunity to make the peculiar discovery even more memorable for his kids.
"I thought I'd eat the head, just to freak the kids out and make them cringe," he revealed.
"The brains were the best part.
"My son thinks I'm awesome but my wife almost spewed."
The story didn't end with the patriarch eating the bonus protein, however.
Mr Downey confirmed he had reached out to raise concerns about the discovery, with the supplier offering the northern suburbs man compensation for the mishap.
"They gave me a Woolies voucher for $50 so I could buy more chicken," he said.
The Perth-based supplier, Mt Barker Chicken, told PerthNow they have been in direct communication with Mr Downey over his finding.
"We take quality and food safety extremely seriously, we have conducted a full investigation and addressed the findings with our butchers," a spokesperson for the East Rockingham company said.
"We remain committed to quality and ensuring customer satisfaction with all of our products."
Despite the chicken supplier confirming the incident, an IGA spokesperson said the Carine location was unaware of the chook sold at their location and even claimed Mr Downey's images may have been produced by artificial intelligence.
When additional images were sent to the supermarket giant, a spokesperson said they were unable to comment on the finding as the owner had not had any formal complaint filed.
The Perth man's discovery is not the first time shoppers at an Australian supermarket have received more than they expected.
WA residents at an Esperance share house were left speechless back in May after discovering a live frog inside their sealed bag of lettuce.
A Tasmanian man also made headlines back in 2020 after discovering his hot roast chicken included a head, in a finding he said could "turn the most hardcore meat lover into a vegetarian".
Would you eat a roasted chicken head? Tell us why or why not in the comments!
