Shopper discovers 'deadly' item in Woolworths buy
- Replies 1
Shopping for groceries is a generally uneventful activity. You pop into your local store, buy what you need, and go home. But what happens when you discover you’ve taken home a dangerous find in one of your purchases?
Unfortunately, this is what happened to a shopper who bought a bag of seedless grapes – and found out they took something else home.
Australia is home to a lot of interesting flora and fauna, wouldn’t you agree? And while the rest of the world fears the local animals and exotic plants, Aussies know the dangers that they’re dealing with. However, it’s always good to read a few reminders now and again to avoid accidents or potentially life-threatening situations.
Just recently, a Woolworths supermarket customer issued an urgent warning after making a concerning discovery in their grocery haul.
Taking to the social media platform Facebook, the Queensland shopper shared that she was alarmed to find a live redback spider nestled inside her newly-bought bag of seedless grapes from her local Woolies.
She also attached a photo of the redback spider crawling among the fruit, and it appears to have made a web between the grapes as well.
In her post, the shopper expressed her concern over the discovery.
She captioned: ‘WARNING: I just bought a punnet of black seedless grapes from the Redbank Plains (Mountainview) store and found a live redback spider in them.’
She added that she tried to reach out to her local store – which she said was a fair distance from her home – but had no luck in speaking to anyone to discuss the matter.
However, a spokesperson from Woolworths has confirmed that the supermarket is now investigating the issue.
‘We take food safety very seriously and work closely with our suppliers to ensure precautions are taken on-farm,’ they told reporters.
They added that they are now in contact with the customer and have requested further information so they can look into this issue with their growers to resolve the matter quickly.
It is believed that Woolworths will refund and replace any fresh food sold online or in stores if customers are not happy with them.
Their policy states: ‘The Woolworths Returns Policy applies in conjunction with our Fresh or Free Guarantee. With our Fresh or Free Guarantee, if you’re not 100% satisfied, we’ll refund the items.’
‘Fresh food’, in this instance, includes any unpackaged products from the store’s ‘Fresh’ departments, and any packaged items marked with the ‘Fresh or Free’ symbol.
One former Woolworths staff commented under the customer’s post and claimed that they were not surprised by this at all. ‘The truth is this happens more than people think,’ they said.
The former staff member added: ‘I am a former produce manager at Woolworths and we would, on occasion, find spiders in the grapes. I once opened a box of bananas to find a live snake amongst them!’
They said that this will, unfortunately, happen from time to time, because it’s a part of ‘nature’.
‘Woolies don’t however have enough time in the day for staff to completely go through everything,’ stated the ex-staff member.
They also said they used to put up signs on stocks (such as grapes) that advised people to ‘use common sense’ and wash the produce before consuming them to avoid instances like this.
This claim comes after another shopper also found a redback spider inside a bag of grapes they bought from Coles. The customer said that he saw his daughter eating the fruit when he spotted the redback spider in the bag.
Luckily, he acted quickly and took away the packet before she got bit. You can read more details about that story here.
Experts said that the highly-venomous redback spider is responsible for more bites requiring antivenom than any other creature in Australia. Because of its small size, any swelling or puncture marks at the bite site are uncommon, but it can lead to extreme pain that lasts for more than 24 hours or linger for weeks and months in some cases.
Although rare, redback spider bites can cause skin infection, coma, seizures, lung complications and respiratory failure. Redback bites also occur frequently, particularly over the summer months. However, their venom is not life-threatening and antivenom is readily available.
If you’ve been bitten by one, remember to:
Do you have a similar experience you’d like to share? Let us know in the comments below!
Unfortunately, this is what happened to a shopper who bought a bag of seedless grapes – and found out they took something else home.
Australia is home to a lot of interesting flora and fauna, wouldn’t you agree? And while the rest of the world fears the local animals and exotic plants, Aussies know the dangers that they’re dealing with. However, it’s always good to read a few reminders now and again to avoid accidents or potentially life-threatening situations.
Just recently, a Woolworths supermarket customer issued an urgent warning after making a concerning discovery in their grocery haul.
Make sure to wash the produce you buy from the supermarket. Credit: Pixabay/Pexels
Taking to the social media platform Facebook, the Queensland shopper shared that she was alarmed to find a live redback spider nestled inside her newly-bought bag of seedless grapes from her local Woolies.
She also attached a photo of the redback spider crawling among the fruit, and it appears to have made a web between the grapes as well.
In her post, the shopper expressed her concern over the discovery.
She captioned: ‘WARNING: I just bought a punnet of black seedless grapes from the Redbank Plains (Mountainview) store and found a live redback spider in them.’
She added that she tried to reach out to her local store – which she said was a fair distance from her home – but had no luck in speaking to anyone to discuss the matter.
However, a spokesperson from Woolworths has confirmed that the supermarket is now investigating the issue.
‘We take food safety very seriously and work closely with our suppliers to ensure precautions are taken on-farm,’ they told reporters.
The spider looked very comfortable nestled in between the grapes. Credit: Facebook
They added that they are now in contact with the customer and have requested further information so they can look into this issue with their growers to resolve the matter quickly.
It is believed that Woolworths will refund and replace any fresh food sold online or in stores if customers are not happy with them.
Their policy states: ‘The Woolworths Returns Policy applies in conjunction with our Fresh or Free Guarantee. With our Fresh or Free Guarantee, if you’re not 100% satisfied, we’ll refund the items.’
‘Fresh food’, in this instance, includes any unpackaged products from the store’s ‘Fresh’ departments, and any packaged items marked with the ‘Fresh or Free’ symbol.
One former Woolworths staff commented under the customer’s post and claimed that they were not surprised by this at all. ‘The truth is this happens more than people think,’ they said.
The former staff member added: ‘I am a former produce manager at Woolworths and we would, on occasion, find spiders in the grapes. I once opened a box of bananas to find a live snake amongst them!’
They said that this will, unfortunately, happen from time to time, because it’s a part of ‘nature’.
‘Woolies don’t however have enough time in the day for staff to completely go through everything,’ stated the ex-staff member.
They also said they used to put up signs on stocks (such as grapes) that advised people to ‘use common sense’ and wash the produce before consuming them to avoid instances like this.
The former staff said it was common to find insects inside bags of fruit or vegetables bought from groceries. Credit: Pixabay/Pexels
This claim comes after another shopper also found a redback spider inside a bag of grapes they bought from Coles. The customer said that he saw his daughter eating the fruit when he spotted the redback spider in the bag.
Luckily, he acted quickly and took away the packet before she got bit. You can read more details about that story here.
Experts said that the highly-venomous redback spider is responsible for more bites requiring antivenom than any other creature in Australia. Because of its small size, any swelling or puncture marks at the bite site are uncommon, but it can lead to extreme pain that lasts for more than 24 hours or linger for weeks and months in some cases.
Here are the signs and symptoms that you should look out for. Image credit: The Seniors Discount Club
Although rare, redback spider bites can cause skin infection, coma, seizures, lung complications and respiratory failure. Redback bites also occur frequently, particularly over the summer months. However, their venom is not life-threatening and antivenom is readily available.
If you’ve been bitten by one, remember to:
- Wash the area and keep it clean
- Call the Poisons Information Centre on 13 11 26
- If symptoms are severe, go to the nearest hospital
- It is usually not necessary to call an ambulance
- Do NOT apply a pressure immobilisation bandage
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