Animal-loving singer Morrissey has branded U.S. President Barack Obama "abysmal" for supporting the slaughter of 45 million turkeys for America's Thanksgiving celebrations.

The former The Smiths star has hit out at the U.S. leader's administration ahead of the annual festivities on Thursday (28Nov13), slamming White House staff as "embarrassingly stupid" for holding a 'turkey pardon' when one bird is spared death on the President's orders.

In a statement, Morrissey writes, "Please ignore the abysmal example set by President Obama who, in the name of Thanksgiving, supports torture as 45 million birds are horrifically abused; dragged through electrified stun baths, and then have their throats slit. And President Obama laughs. Haha, so funny!...

"Further, the meat industry is responsible for 51 per cent of human-caused greenhouse-gas emission, therefore the embarrassingly stupid White House 'turkey pardon' is open support for a viciously cruel and environmentally irresponsible industry."

Traditional Thanksgiving celebrations in the U.S. include a meal of roast turkey.