Morrisons staff drew together to pursue two thieves as they ran from the Maldon supermarket with hundreds of pounds worth of meat.
A man and woman entered the store, in Wycke Hill, at around 1pm on Wednesday June 4 and, after picking up hundreds of pounds worth of meat, they made no attempt to pay as they left the store.
The suspects are described in a police report as white, in their mid-20s, wearing dark clothing.
A witness, who saw the thieves' getaway on their way for lunch, said: "I was walking past a layby on the road down to Morrisons and noticed a red Ford Fiesta parked there.
"A couple ran past me and frantically climbed into the car.
"I remember thinking it was unfair that the lady was so hurriedly making the man sit in the back seat when he was so tall.
"The car pulled away really quickly."
However, several of the Morrisons staff were in hot pursuit of the meat thieves and they shortly rounded the corner.
"There must have been at least eight of them running after the couple, including the butcher", commented the witness.
Despite the staff's best efforts, the thieves did manage to escape.
A Morrisons spokesperson said: "We have a zero tolerance approach to all forms of anti-social behaviour in our stores including theft.
"We train all our staff to be vigilant and we work closely with the police to report crime and catch those responsible."
Meat theft is a crime which has been increasing in recent years.
Professor Joshua Bamfield, Director of the Centre for Retail Research, said: "Meat thefts seem to be a crime driven by the economic problems of late.
"For the most part, it is highly organised and police are seeing a much higher rate of first time offenders.
"It is quite easy to steal because the meat is sealed in relatively small packs and most people seem to be taking beef because it is the most expensive meat you can buy."
Customer theft in the retail sector was at the highest level it had been for nine years, accounting for 82% of all retail crime by volume in 2012-2013, despite a £521m expenditure on crime and loss
prevention in this sector in the same year.
Police are currently reviewing CCTV footage.
Any witnesses are to call the police on 101.
