Needles in strawberries
Recall after needles found in strawberries | Otago Daily Times Online
Wednesday, 12 September 2018
Recall after needles
Consumers are being urged to throw out strawberries purchased over the past week in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria after needles were found inside the fruit.
Consumers are being urged to throw out strawberries purchased over the past week in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria after needles were found inside the fruit.
Health officials and police on Wednesday said sewing needles were hidden in at least three punnets of strawberries supplied to Woolworths from a southeast Queensland farm.
Those strawberries were bought in Queensland and Victoria, but it is unclear if the brands involved, Berry Obsession and Berry Liscious, are supplied to other retailers.
"I'm out here today to advise people if they've brought any strawberries in Queensland, New South Wales or Victoria since early last week, that they should dispose of them," Queensland Health's chief health officer Jeanette Young said.
"If someone were to swallow a sewing needle it could get caught up in their gut."
Police launched an investigation on Sunday after a Queensland man reported swallowing a contaminated berry.
Two people in Victoria have since come forward after similar experiences.
Acting Chief Superintendent Terry Lawrence would not say at what point in the supply chain police believe the needles were planted.
He declined to name the farm involved but said investigators had been in contact with its operator and Woolworths representatives.
"It's been some time for us to look at this sort of investigation, quite some time," he said.
Woolworths removed strawberries from its shelves on Wednesday and consumers can be confident in purchasing them from Thursday onwards, Dr Young added.
We're talking new year resolutions...
Tidying the house before going to bed each night, meditating upon waking or taking the stairs at work.
What’s something quick, or easy, that you started doing that made a major positive change in your life?
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️