Shopper finds eggs crawling with maggots at supermarket

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I just read about this in an email. Got to be careful when you are choosing your eggs next time.

The New Paper, 21 March 2007, Pg. 6
By Andrew Chin and Peter Rajendran

He was selecting his carton of eggs from a supermarket shelf when he came across "what looked like grains of rice" on the eggs.

He took a closer look, and to his horror, discovered that those "grains" were actually moving.

They turned out to be live maggots.

"You could smell the stench over a metre away from the racks," said the customer, Mr Tan (not his real name), who was doing his monthly shopping trip at the Bukit Merah NTUC FairPrice supermarket.

"Other customers could smell it too, and they were shocked at the sight."

Disgusted, Mr Tan took a photo of a magoot-ingested egg carton and e-mailed it to The New Paper on 18 Mar.

The next day, The New Paper decided to check his claim. And it turned out to be true.

There was a foul smell coming from the shelves at the supermarket.

Then, we found a similar carton of rotten eggs. It was deep within the fourth layer of the stacks. It, too, had maggots crawling over it.

The stench from this carton was overwhelming.

And much to our surprise, we managed to buy the carton, without anyone stopping us at any counter.

The cashier did not know what she had just sold.

When contacted, the National Environmental Agency (NEA) said that a team had been sent to investigate the case an hour before The New Paper arrived in the morning.

During the team's inspection, no rotten or damaged eggs were found.

Nevertheless, the members advised the NTUC supervisor to conduct a complete check on all eggs to be safe.

A 23 year-old supervisor, who gave her name as Ms Malinee, said they subsequently inspected and removed any cartons of rotten eggs.

"I myself removed two cartons," she said.

They may have missed the carton spotted by The New Paper, but how did the maggots get there in the first place?

Ms Malinee explained that when customers browsed through the cartons, some would accidentally break and egg or two.

They would then leave it on the shelf without notifying staff members.

There cartons with broken eggs would be left hidden among the stacks.

Over time, the broken eggs would rot, and the maggots would start to appear.

A spokesman for NTUC FairPrice gave the same answer.

So what have staff members been doing to prevent such occurrences?

Said the spokesman: "Twice a day, our store employees conduct random checks on eggs displayed on shelves for cracks and breakage."

"NEA also conducts regular random checks on stores as part of a standard operating procedure."

After our visit, FairPrice employees conducted a "100 per cent check" and found two more trays of eggs with maggots, said the NEA spokesman.

FairPrice subsequently removed the whole batch of eggs and returned them to the supplier.

They have since taken action to prevent further occurrences.

"We have taken immediate steps to ensure that all branches exercise greater vigilance in their checks on eggs."

"We have also alerted our supplier - a well established company - to step up checks at the source," the spokesman said.

"We apologise for the unpleasant experience and remain committed to upholding food safety standards."


NEA needs proof

According to the NEA, the agency is empowered to take enforcement action against negligent retailers.

But they would require proof. They would also need a written statement from the consumer who has bought the spoilt food, and the receipt of purchase.

An NEA spokesman said: "Offenders may be fined up to $2,000 on conviction in court."

NEA added that while retailers have a responsibility to ensure the quality of food sold, consumers play a part too.

"Consumers are advised to check that food items are wholesome before purchase."

"If they come across unwholesome food, they should inform the retailer quickly."

The authorities have taken action and implemented procedures to ensure that food safety standards are met.