by Kaynat Choudhury

These greedy gobblers have given a farmer a Christmas quandary.

Because of the warm autumn weather the free-range turkeys have eaten too much food – and are now too big to fit in most family ovens.

Farmer Anthony Fleck, of Coombes Farm, in Sutton Valence, said: “They’ve all had too much grub and now they’re too fat! All of them need to go on a slimming course!

“Being free range and since we had a mild autumn, these turkeys have just waddled around, eating constantly.”

In past years, the Kelly Bronze turkeys’ usual weight fell between 1st 12lb and 2st 2lb but this year, some of them weigh nearly 3st 2lb. They’re the biggest Mr Fleck has seen in his 30 years as a farmer.

The size of the turkeys has prompted fears that families will not want to buy them.

Teresa Holmes, mother of four and from Chatham, said: “That’s too big. We buy a much smaller turkey and still end up with leftovers.”

Mike Dempsey, of Rochester, said: “I’ve never heard of turkeys being that big. I doubt it would even fit in my mother’s oven!”

“I wouldn’t ever buy one that big.” says Shelly Boynton, of Cooling.

If families do snub the tubby turkeys, he would be forced to sell them to restaurants at a loss.

Mr Fleck is also considering sending some turkeys to London markets, something that he has never done before.

Another choice is to sell them as “half-turkeys” but he doubts that individuals would want half a turkey on the table.

He could also deep freeze the turkeys ready to sell at a cheaper rate during Easter.

All the turkeys at Coombes Farm will be slaughtered since the farm is not in the breeding business. If any were kept on, Mr Fleck worries that they would get even fatter.

According to the Guinness Book of Records, the world's largest turkey was recorded in 1989. It weighed just over 6st. British owner, Philip Cook, auctioned the greedy gobbler, named Tyson, for $6,692.