Wetherspoon has the meatiest nuggets

Pub group JD Wetherspoon has topped a survey designed to check the quality of chicken nuggets served up on chidren's menus.

Trading standards officers from Leicestershire County Council checked samples of chicken nuggets and chicken strips served in 20 pubs and restaurants across the county.

The nuggets served up at the Monkey Walk, a Wetherspoon pub in Coalville, came joint top with 85 per cent chicken meat content - tying with those served up in the cafe at supermarket chain Morrisons in the same town.

Pubs made up four of the survey's top five, while the lowest chicken content was just 45 per cent, found in chicken nuggets at a takeaway.

David Bull, head of trading standards at the council, said: "There is no standard in law for a chicken nugget so we expected a variation, but we were surprised at the differences we found."

Although the 'bottom 10', all with meat content below 60 per cent, were not named, Mr Bull added that "one of the biggest fast-food retailers in the world could only manage 46 per cent."

In one case, there was a big variation between the manufacturer's claim and the actual meat content found, "which we will be investigating further because on the face of it the manufacturer has committed an offence."

Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon said the chicken nuggets served at the pub were the same as those sold in all the company's pubs. "We are committed to serving the highest quality meals and the survey bears this fact out."

The Whitbread-owned Brewer's Fayre pub-restaurant in Ashby-de-la-Zouch came third with 82 per cent meat content. The nuggets at another Whitbread pub, the Observatory in Thorpe Astley, were fourth at 79 per cent meat content. Spirit Group's Bees Knees pub in Branstone was fifth, serving up a 76 per cent meat nugget.