SHOCKED shopper Val Potter felt ill when she found her Sainsbury fresh soup contained chicken, sweetcorn - and a fat slug. But Mrs Potter, from Colchester, was unhappy when she received just £20 compensation for a slug in a jar of Sainsbury's own-label Cantonese-style chicken and sweetcorn soup.

SHOCKED shopper Val Potter felt ill when she found her Sainsbury fresh soup contained chicken, sweetcorn - and a fat slug.

But Mrs Potter, from Colchester, was unhappy when she received just £20 compensation for a slug in a jar of Sainsbury's own-label Cantonese-style chicken and sweetcorn soup.

She said: "It said fresh soup on the label so I was looking forward to having it for lunch."

But as she spooned it out from the saucepan for husband, retired Foreign Office security official Terry, she saw something strange in the bowl.

She said: "At first I thought it was a piece of corn or chicken. Then when I examined it I was horrified to discover it was a yellow and green two-inch long slug.

"My stomach turned - it was vile. I am a trained nurse and have seen a lot of things but nothing has ever made me feel quite as sick as the slug lying there in my soup.

"We lived in China for several years where they eat most things. But I don't think they would care to eat a slug."

Mrs Potter, 61, called her local Sainsbury's store in Colchester, where she regularly spends £150 a week, and told the manager of the grisly find.

"He asked me to bring it in because he said a lot of people made claims that were not true. I took it back wrapped in a tissue and even some of the staff said it made them feel quite ill."

Sainsbury's eventually wrote back to her thanking her for telling them about the slug - and enclosing £20 in vouchers.

The chain's customer service department said they were sorry she had found the creature in her soup and promised they would be taking the matter up with their supplier.

A spokeswoman for Sainsbury's said: "We have apologised sincerely to Mrs Potter. We are obviously concerned because food quality and integrity is a priority for us.

"Our suppliers have strict precautions in place to ensure the integrity of the food but unfortunately in this case it appears that a mistake was made.

"We are consulting with our supplier to ensure that incidents like this do not happen again."