Meat thief had a bulge in his pants

A man was still on the lam this weekend after stuffing two large cuts of meat down his pants before running out of a foodmarket.

Staff at Farro Fresh in Auckland's Grey Lynn chased after the man on Thursday afternoon. However, he almost bowled over three shoppers before jumping into a car and speeding away.

The theft came two days after video footage of a man stealing a $250 limited edition bottle of champagne from the same store went viral on the internet.

Farro Fresh owner Janene Draper said she'd had a gutsful of people helping themselves to premium stock.

"We have spent $45,000 on security equipment for our three stores.

"We employ 200 people and it's their livelihoods as well as our own that is being affected," she said.

The middle-aged man stashed two legs of lamb down the front of his trousers before being spotted by a grocery assistant.

The store has passed footage of the thief, the number plate, make and model of his vehicle to the police.

Draper said the man who stole the wine on Monday was with a woman and three children.

The woman spoke to staff while the man took the Limited Edition James Bond Bollinger Champagne and stuffed it into his jacket.

They all left in what was believed to be a Silver Holden Captiva at 11am.

"It's so frustrating because we would have to sell eight of those bottles to be able to pay for one," Draper said. "We only got three in and it is the most expensive item in the shop."

Thieves did not fit a stereotype and even a doctor had been caught stealing wine from the store.