A man who bit a supermarket worker claimed he was trying to practise an alternative lifestyle.

Steven Cattell, 20, said he was practising Freeganism after he was caught in a yard behind Tesco in Lewes on March 5 this year.

When two workers held him down he bit one on the chest, leaving a two-inch mark.

Cattell, 20, told police he was “shopping in the bins” for food that had been thrown away.

He admitted causing actual bodily harm at Lewes Crown Court yesterday.

Judge Richard Hayward deferred his sentence until February 28.

He said if Cattell held down a job he would receive a community punishment. If he does not, he will receive an “immediate custodial sentence”.

Cattell, of Ousedale Close, Lewes, has 20 previous convictions for 44 crimes.

After the hearing Cattell said he still agreed with Freeganism but would practise it more carefully.

He said: “I know I agree with what they say and it has got value.”