Lidl had its most successful Christmas trading period on record, the supermarket chain said, boosted by a rise of a third in party food sales. Revenue rose almost 7% to more than £1bn over the four weeks to Christmas Eve as customers bought 16 million pigs in blankets and a turkey every second.

Lidl enjoyed higher revenues in the run-up to Christmas after attracting an additional 2million customers. The discount grocery chain revealed its sales grew by 7 per cent year-on-year in the four weeks ending 24 December to over £1billion, a record for the festive season.

The British arm of German retailer Lidl on Thursday reported a 7% rise in sales over the four-week period before Christmas, with demand for holiday staples such as turkey and pigs in blankets pushing its turnover to a record high.