Butcher 'devastated' after theft of Christmas meat

The owners of a family-run butcher shop in West Sussex are pleading for help after someone stole their delivery van and made off with more than £2,000 worth of Christmas deliveries.

The white Ford Transit Custom van was taken on Thursday morning in Cuckfield, according to Sussex Police.

Paula Hutchings, from SK Hutchings in Partridge Green, said she was "devastated" about the theft: "[It has] nearly broken us."

She said the van had been "laden with our homemade sausages, home-cured bacon and meats supplied from our farm".

Ms Hutchings told BBC Radio Sussex the refrigerated van was "the family's livelihood".

She said they were having to redo all the orders and source a refrigerated van.

She said the theft was "hard to comprehend" and thanked all her Christmas customers for their patience.

Ms Hutchings asked people to be on the lookout for "anyone who is suddenly offering a large quantity of sausages and bacon for sale".

Sussex Police said it had undertaken a "widespread search effort" to locate the van and is appealing for anyone with information about the theft to contact them.

Follow BBC Sussex on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected] or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.