Hands off my comb

Gunter, aka the Feathered Forager, has gone into hiding.

According to the Food Standards Agency, a Spanish company is seeking permission to use extract of cockerel’s comb as a novel food supplement in the UK.

Apparently cockerel comb is rich in sodium hyaluronate – a well known lubricant – and is consumed widely in Europe as part of traditional dishes. It is also used as an ingredient in dairy products.

The FSA helpfully provides a definition of cockerel’s comb, describing it as “the large fleshy red skin on top of the cockerel’s head”.

Well, Gunter is very attached to the “large fleshy red skin” on top of his head and has taken up semi-permanent residence in the filing cabinet to the left of the Poultry World editor’s desk.