WARNING: Graphic content
It’s enough to put you off your dinner.
Lauren Whitburn and her family were preparing their regular Saturday night meal of nachos, when she made a sickening discovery in a Coles brand can of beans.
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Whitburn said she purchased the can from Mount Barker Coles in the Adelaide Hills on March 2. She opened the can over the sink later that day, poured the beans over a strainer, and noticed something (or things) that shouldn’t have been there.
“The closer I looked, the more apparent a claw became. It was like an arm or a leg crunched up, and I was like, ‘that is clearly an animal’,” she said.
Whitburn believes what she saw were body parts of a rat, but health authorities are yet to identity the creature.
“I was absolutely horrified,” Whitburn said.
“It definitely put me off my dinner.
“A lot of my concern has come from not only have I got this part of a rat, which looks like a leg and maybe a tail … it’s the fact that it could be in multiple cans of beans and people could be eating it.”
Whitburn regularly purchases the Coles brand red kidney beans and hasn’t had an issue before.
According to the label, the beans are packed in Italy.
Coles apologised to Whitburn and requested photos and further information so it could investigate and inform the health department.
In a statement to 7NEWS.com.au, Coles confirmed it had commenced an immediate investigation with its supplier.
“Food safety is paramount at Coles. We are concerned to hear about this customer’s experience and discovery with this product, and we are currently investigating with our supplier,” Coles said.
“Our suppliers take great care when processing all our products and include equipment and teams that conduct raw material inspections, pest control and quality checks during processing.”
Whitburn also contacted SA Health, who sent out authorities to her home to pick up the suspected animal remains for further testing.
SA Health said the remains would be transferred to the Victorian Health Department, where the Coles head office is located.
“The discovery of foreign objects in food is a concern as it can pose a risk to public health,” SA Health said.
“Our food regulators, in communication with the customer, have organised to collect the product today and transfer it to the Victorian Department of Health.”
Food Standards Australia and VicHealth have been contacted for comment.
