Heinz's new Wigan-made Christmas soup sells out in hours

Most of us will have to wait another year before sampling the new recipe then - although a lucky a few could yet win a tin in a competition.

Heinz kicked off the festive season with a bang on Monday by launching its first ever Christmas Dinner Big Soup - complete with turkey, pigs in blankets, stuffing and chunky potatoes - and made, like all its tinned products, at the giant Kitt Green plant.

Only 500 tins were issued in this first limited edition batch, so there was a made scramble to snaffle a tin before they ran out just hours after launch

But company bosses say that fans should not despair because more will be made available in a competition and urged them to keep an eye out on Heinz’s social media channels for more information.

The reaction to the launch which caused its fast and festive sell-out is backed up by research conducted by Heinz which shows that Brits really do love our Christmas Dinner; with nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of those who celebrate Christmas admitting that they would eat it every day if they could, and over a third (36 per cent) even prefer it to any other meal.

With the hours that can go into making a Christmas dinner, two fifths (42 per cent) say they would eat it more often if it didn’t take so long to cook, and 36 per cent would if it weren’t so expensive.

Roast potatoes topped the list of must haves on the annual festive plate (63 per cent), followed by a turkey (48), pigs in blankets (42) and stuffing (41).

Anke von Hanstein, Brand Manager, Heinz Soups said: “It’s been absolutely incredible to see the nation’s response to our Heinz Christmas Dinner Big Soup.

"To have sold out in just three hours was beyond our wildest expectations. We’ve certainly learned never to underestimate the power of the mighty Christmas Dinner!

"Here at Heinz, we’re keen to make sure as many people as possible can enjoy a Christmas Dinner, regardless of what form that may come in.

"Which is why we’re going to make a few more of our Christmas Dinner Big Soup available in a competition – keep an eye on our social channels for more details.

"It’s wonderful to be able to bring some additional festive magic to the nation this Christmas – and watch this space: we hope to bring back Heinz Christmas Dinner Soup even bigger and better next year.”

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