Aberdeen's rowies are a health hazard, claims guru

THE TV health guru Gillian McKeith has launched a campaign to kill off a much-loved Scots delicacy.

The dietitian, who helped Pop Idol winner Michelle McManus to shed five stones, now has the famous Aberdeen rowie, or buttery, in her sights.

She believes the rolls, each containing 300 calories, are taking a terrible toll on the city's health.

While visiting the area at the weekend, she said: "I'm here to banish the buttery. Aberdeen is in need of my help."

The rowie was first designed as a food for sailors fed up with dried biscuits. The huge amounts of salt and fat in the snack meant it would not go off during long trips at sea.

It is now the breakfast roll of choice for residents in the Granite City and surrounding areas. It is believed about ten million are sold every year.

But McKeith's verdict on the popular dish, which experts say is best toasted, has not been universally welcomed.

Jim Leel, who makes hundreds of rowies every day at the Aberdeen Buttery Company, said: "It always has been the food of the working man. There is nothing wrong with our morning roll."