A supermarket in Mitcham has been left red-faced after it was caught selling half-priced knives the same day the company vowed to start clearing them from its shelves.

On Saturday, March 9, Asda said that it would remove single kitchen knives from sale in all its stores by the end of April this year.

The decision to stop selling these items comes in response to rising concerns about knife crime in the UK, particularly those involving children and young people.

But people were left outraged and confused when that very same day, pictures taken at the Bond Road shop showed bread knives on sale for 50p, reduced from their original rice of £1.

The woman who took the picture, who wished to remain nameless, said it was a bad look on the company.

"Down the back of Asda, in the middle of knife crime crisis," she said.

"Good to know our kids can get a knife for 50p."

When the announcement was made to scrap the single packaged knives, Nick Jones, Asda's senior vice president, said: “We strongly believe that we have a responsibility to support the communities that we serve.

"Whilst we have already taken steps to restrict the sale of knives to ensure that they do not fall into the wrong hands, we felt there was more we could be doing to support those looking at how to bring this issue under control.

“We know single knives are the most common knife products to be stolen and that is why we have chosen to remove these items from our stores.

"This is an issue that means a lot to our customers and to our colleagues, and we are committed to playing our small part in helping to make our communities safer for all.”

When approached for comment about why the knives were on sale the same day as the announcement, a spokesman for Asda said it was a mistake on their part.

“We are committed to playing our part in helping to keep our communities safe, which is why we are removing single knives from sale.

"These knives were marked down in error and have been removed.

"We remain committed to removing all single knives from sale by the end of April and welcome all feedback that helps us to continue being a responsible retailer for our customers.”

In 2016, Asda signed a voluntary agreement on a set of principles to prevent the sale of knives to under 18s and to ensure that knives are safely displayed and packaged.