Supermarket giant Tesco has issued guidance on the proper cooking, defrosting and storage of meat. The retailer emphasised that certain meats, such as sausages, chicken, turkey, game, duck, pork, mince, and rolled or boned joints, must be thoroughly cooked.

Sausages require cooking "until piping hot throughout, with no pink colour in the centre". The supermarket added: "If you have a temperature probe, check the centre of the meat has reached 70C for at least two minutes (or 75C for at least 30 seconds)."

By contrast, other meats such as steaks, whole lamb cuts and venison may be served rare, as harmful bacteria exists solely on the exterior of these cuts. Expectant mothers should ensure all meat is cooked through due to toxoplasmosis risks.

Frozen sausages must be fully defrosted prior to cooking. Tesco recommended: "Defrost in the fridge overnight, or if you're going to cook it straight away, you can defrost using the microwave. It's best not to use running water to avoid spreading germs around."

The supermarket chain also warned against washing sausages. This practice can cause water to splash onto worktops, spreading harmful bacteria that may lead to food poisoning.

The supermarket clarified: "We may have read in cookbooks or been told by our grandmother to wash poultry or meat before preparing it but in fact this is one of the worst things you can do. Just small numbers of Campylobacter, and other food poisoning bacteria, such as Salmonella and E.coli O157, found in fresh poultry and other raw meat can cause serious infections."

Tesco advised always storing raw sausages in sealed containers at the bottom of the fridge to stop juices dripping onto other ready-to-eat foods.

They also suggested cleaning surfaces before and after food preparation and using separate chopping boards and utensils for raw sausages and meat.

After cooking sausages, they recommended washing all the utensils thoroughly with hot water and washing up liquid or putting them in the dishwasher, and washing your hands thoroughly. They also advised disposing of any meat packaging carefully and washing your hands afterwards.