A supermarket in Penge has been accused of racism after it put a tin of ackee worth £3.80 in a security box.

Toby Taylor, of Ravensbourne Park in Catford, posted a photograph last Saturday of a can of Dunn's River Jamaican Ackee in salted water that had been locked in a clear security box.

Mr Taylor posted: “Really Sainsbury's really? Bet you don't security tag the f*****g Hummus do you.”

In comparison a £20 bottle of truffle oil in the Penge High Street Sainsbury's was not security tagged.

Mr Taylor said that Sainsbury's was reinforcing an ugly stereotype about people in the Afro Caribbean Community.

He said: “Imagine the shame of having to take half of the ingredients in your national dish to the till to get a big plastic box taken off it.

“Its about perception as much as anything else - if you were a young child or someone who had never met someone of Afro Caribbean heritage and you saw that on a shelf, what conclusion would you come to? It’s such a specific food item as well. It’s literally half of their national dish.”

Mr Taylor said: “It made me feel angry to be honest, and also quite sad because I think it’s the sort of thing that makes us blind to these small racial gestures. They all add up.”

He clarified that he does not think Sainsbury's has been intentionally racist. However he says it has reinforced a harmful stereotype.

Many Facebook users on Mr Taylor’s feed supported his views, though some were more sceptical. Samantha Venesiani said: “Legs of lamb are tagged in Iceland and steak is in Tesco. Is that racist? I think you maybe need to get over yourself.”

A spokesperson for Sainsbury's said: “We take the decision on which products to tag on an individual store basis to protect high value or frequently stolen items.”

The spokesperson added that in this instance the security box has been put in place because tins of ackee keep getting stolen.