Shopper disappointed over gruesome discovery on Woolworths roast chicken: ‘I’m so put off chicken’

When we think of a roast chicken from the supermarket, we often imagine the convenience of a quick, ready-to-eat meal that can save us time in the kitchen.

However, for one Woolworths customer, this image was shattered when she made a shocking and stomach-turning discovery.



Sarah, a resident of Leederville, had picked up a roast chicken from the deli section at Woolworths in Mt Hawthorn's The Mezz shopping centre, expecting to serve her family a hassle-free dinner.

Little did she know, her meal would come with an uninvited and horrifying addition—live maggots.


Screenshot 2024-09-16 at 10.16.00 AM.png
Sarah had a disgusting discovery on her Woolworths roast chicken. Credit: Facebook


The busy working mother had consumed half of the chicken herself before leaving the rest for her family's dinner.

It was only when her husband reheated the chicken that evening that the gruesome discovery was made.

To their horror, they realised they had already eaten part of the contaminated meal.

In a state of panic, Sarah's husband urged her to ‘go throw up, you don’t know what bacteria is in there’.

‘We were just Googling the risks,’ she recalled.

The couple spent the night researching the possible dangers, concerned for their well-being and children.

Sarah contacted Woolworths that night, expressing her deep concern and urging the supermarket to ‘investigate this matter promptly and take the necessary actions to ensure such incidents do not occur in the future’.



The response she received the next morning, however, felt impersonal and possibly ‘AI-generated’, lacking the empathy and urgency the situation demanded.

'It is concerning to hear that the product did not meet our high standards for quality control as they were live maggots,' the email from Woolworths customer service read.

'I would like to sincerely apologise for the experience and inconvenience caused.'

‘I can imagine how disappointing this was for you. Please be assured that Woolworths takes all feedback such as yours very seriously.’

While the email promised that the issue had been ‘forwarded’ to the store's manager, Sarah was not satisfied with the virtual response and decided to visit the store in person.

‘I could tell he was expecting me, he wasn’t surprised,’ she said.

Upon showing the manager a video of the maggot-infested chicken, she felt he was dismissive and uninterested in viewing the evidence.



After some negotiation, Sarah was offered a refund for the chicken, but she insisted on being reimbursed for her entire purchase, totalling $40.

Her primary concern was not just compensation but assurance that measures would be taken to prevent future occurrences.

Despite her efforts, Sarah has not received further communication from Woolworths.

‘I haven’t heard back since,’ she said.

‘I’m so put off chicken.’

Her sentiment was echoed by friends who shared similar experiences with the supermarket's hot chickens and minced meat on social media.

'If I had gone to a restaurant, it would be such a big deal,' Sarah argued, highlighting the gravity of the situation.



In response to the incident, a Woolworths spokesperson said, 'We take food quality and safety very seriously and have raised this with our deli team and supplier.'

In a similar story, a Woolworths shopper was disgusted after finding insects in his salad mix.

While offered a refund, the shopper expressed concern over food standards. You can read more about the story here.
Key Takeaways

  • A Woolworths customer was shocked to find live maggots in a roast chicken purchased at their Mt Hawthorn store.
  • After consuming part of the chicken, the discovery was made when her husband reheated the food for dinner.
  • The customer expressed her disappointment and concern in an email to Woolworths and requested an investigation and preventative measures.
  • Woolworths responded, apologising for the incident and stating that they take food quality and safety very seriously, mentioning that the issue was escalated to the deli team and supplier.
Have you ever encountered a problem with the quality or safety of your food? How was it handled by the store? Share your stories in the comments below!
 
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They just cook it don't check it out. Alot of people eat maggots extra meat. When it comes to packaged foods check before buying, half the time bugs are born once in heat bags under lights. No body can inspect foods.
 
It is entirely more likely that the contamination happened at home. A fly has blown the chicken after opening, as maggots develop rather quickly from the eggs.
I agree. How was it stored at home? It was partially eaten at one meal and then reheated for another, and they still found live maggots. It shows they don't know much about food storage and preparation.
 
Fly eggs/maggots do not survive cooking processes and flies do not lay eggs/maggots on hot food, they do however lay on warm food but it usually takes at least 7hrs before eggs turn into maggots.
Yes, I believed the cooking and then the hot lights that the cooked chickens sit under would prevent any maggots from being alive on the item.

The article doesn't include details on how long the chicken was in this person's car/home or whether it was wrapped so it's hard to know when the maggots developed.
 
I can’t believe in this day and age we are buying meat from Cole’s or woolies and it’s GONE OFF 2-3 days later…in the fridge! Especially chicken! these companies make enough profit but continue to cut back in all areas!
 
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What I got was she had consumed HALF of the chicken and left the rest for the family's dinner.
Did she consume that at one sitting or over multiple days?
Greedy mother or small family.
In my ultra active days in my late teens and early 20s, I would consume a WHOLE size 10 or 12 chicken along with two whole cobs of corn for a single meal. I didn't have an ounce of fat. Playing rugby league, touch football, surfing, golf, tennis and squash, amongst other physical activities, I burnt off the kilojoules as quick as I would consume them.

They were the days! Now I'm a sedentary fatso, weighing in at 20 kgs more than I did back then. :cry:
 
An "unusual story" - but "she" had consumed half of the roast chicken earlier in the day (and didn't find any thing wrong then) - where was the chicken stored/placed between then and the re-heat time for husband and rest of the family?? - Very strange story...mmmm.....
 
It’s possible as it had been in their house for some time before reheating that it was flyblown there, it’s a very quick process, then again it could of been at the store.
 

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