Austrian police have announced that a baby food jar that was found to contain rat poison was recalled by its manufacturer due to suspected tampering and warned citizens against consuming it.
The Germany-based HiPP brand on Friday recalled food jars at more than 1,000 SPAR supermarkets in Austria, citing the possibility that a “dangerous substance” had been added to carrots with potato puree through tampering.
What do we know about the baby food in question?
Amid the ongoing investigation in Germany, police in Austria’s eastern Burgenland province have seized baby food jars in Austria as well as the Czech Republic and Slovakia. said in a statement.
One sample reported by a customer included a 190g jar of carrot and potato baby food.
“A sample of the seized product was tested on Saturday afternoon and confirmed to be rat poison,” he said of the 190-gram jar.
Austria’s agency for food safety said the poison may have been introduced as part of an extortion scheme.
Police warned customers not to consume the product. It described the suspected jar as follows:
- A white sticker with a red circle on the bottom of the jar
- A lid that has already been opened or is damaged
Police advised customers to wash their hands thoroughly after coming in contact with the products.
What did German baby food brand HiPP say?
HiPP said the possibility could not be ruled out that a hazardous substance was added to the product or the product was tampered with.
“According to our current knowledge, this serious situation involves external criminal interference that affects the SPAR Austria distribution channel,” the Germany-based company said on Saturday. They warned that consumption of the jars in question could be life-threatening.
HiPP and SPAR said customers will receive a full refund when they return the recalled products.
A number of similar food products have recently hit the baby food market, affecting giants including Nestlé, Danone and Lactalis.
Edited by: Sam Dusan Inayatullah