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HAVE a butcher’s at this – it’s the world’s first fat-free square sausage.

An entrepreneur has come up with a healthier option for customers who are keeping an eye on their waistline.

Gareth Downie is serving up the lean “skinny slice” at his butcher’s shops.

A typical slice of square sausage can contain up to 40g of fat but each 100g skinny slice contains just 0.5g of fat and 115 calories.

And when the Record did a taste test yesterday, most people couldn’t tell the difference.

Gareth, 30, said: “The sausage is hugely popular – it’s been flying off the shelves.

“I wanted us to offer something a bit different and my girlfriend gave me the idea. She was at Slimming World and was saying how there was a big demand for low-fat sausages. So I decided to try and create the first fat-free square sausage.”

Gareth, a director of West Coast Fisheries and Butchers, and master butcher Jim McLauchlan spent two months coming up with the perfect recipe.

The pair replaced the fat with lean meat and developed the combination of herbs to retain the traditional taste. They have also developed lower-fat burgers, beef olives and pork and beef links – all with less than 1.5g of fat per 100g.

Gareth, who has shops in Prestwick and Ayr, had the meat tested by an accredited lab at Glasgow University. And last week, they confirmed that the skinny slice can officially be classed as “fat-free”.

He said: “It’s made from lean British meat with a light seasoning and rusk. It’s a healthy option.”

And he’s even checked how it fits in with popular diets. Slimming World said they would class it as a “free” food on their eating plan, while Weight Watchers said it would be worth three ProPoints.

The nutritional information looks impressive – but would the skinny slice pass the taste test?

The Daily Record took to the streets of Glasgow yesterday with regular square sausage and the fat-free version. More than half of the people we spoke to got the two mixed up and almost all gave the skinny slice the thumbs-up.

Pensioner Jean Thomson, from the city’s Barmulloch, said: “I preferred the fat-free one. It was spicy and tasted a bit like haggis.”

Glasgow man Scott Arnott, 37, said: “I could tell the difference between the two. Given the choice, I would pick the fat-free one. Everybody loves square sausage.

“I play in a band and when we went out to play in Abu Dhabi we were asked to bring some square sausage with us.”

Photographer Dan Gilfeather, 40, from Pollokshields, Glasgow, added: “I like them both. The fat-free one has a nice smoky flavour and would be great with a bit of brown sauce.”

Hilary Baines, from Wigan, said: “I didn’t like the full-fat one, it tasted too greasy. But the reduced fat sausage was really nice.”

Construction foreman Brian Lipton, 50, from East Kilbride, said: “I’m a bit surprised because I really like the fat-free one and didn’t think I would.”

But Gary Wooton, 33, from Airdrie, wasn’t won over by the healthier option. He said: “It is hard to tell which one is best. To be honest, I’m not really sold on any of them.”