Maggots in soup and spider in a cocktail among 3,414 food safety complaints made last year

The FSAI received 139 complaints of incorrect information on food labelling and 97 over the non-displaying of allergen information on food products.

Maggots in soup and a spider in a takeaway cocktail were among some of the unsavoury finds reported to the Food Safety Authority of Ireland last year.

Consumer complaints about unfit food and poor hygiene standards rose 23% last year, with customers reporting incidents of food contaminated with maggots, other insects, plastic, metal, glass, and hair.

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) says it received a total of 3,414 complaints in 2021; 1,235 involved customers complaining about unfit food, while 815 were about poor quality hygiene standards.

622 incidents related to a customer getting food poisoning, and a further 162 people made complaints about unregistered food businesses.

The FSAI also received 139 complaints of incorrect information on food labelling. Ninety-seven complaints were about the non-displaying of allergen information on food products.

The final 344 complaints were about advertising, Covid-19 restrictions, and other issues.

'Body contamination' of food products'

Worryingly, the FSAI says it noticed a marked increase in reports of so-called 'body contamination' of food products last year.

Among the incidents recorded were hair strands being found in numerous takeaway foods, glass found in porridge and sweet potato fries, metal shards found in baked beans, a metal screw found in spareribs, and a maggot found in a portion of soup.

Other complaints related to a can of orange juice found to be filled with beans, a piece of wood inside a container of soup, a spider floating in a takeaway cocktail, and a disposable glove discovered in a pie.

The FSAI says all of the complaints it received in 2021 were subsequently investigated by food inspectors.

"Consumers have a right to safe food. Having people spotting and reporting inappropriate and unsafe food and practices greatly aids our work with the food inspectors and it provides us with information that we can act upon," said FSAI Chief Executive Dr Pamela Byrne.

Dr Byrne said consumers are becoming more aware and now have "a greater understanding of what they should expect from food businesses in Ireland." 

She said that the "considerable increase in complaints regarding unfit food and poor hygiene standards" last year was evidence of this.

“While the figures may be higher in 2021 than 2020, this can partly be contributed to the impact of Covid-19 restrictions,” she said.

The FSAI says 4,718 people contacted its Advice line in 2021, with queries most often coming from people working in the food service sector — manufacturers, retailers, researchers, distributors, consultants, and consumers.

The majority of queries were about how to start up a new food business, food labelling legislation, food safety training, and food supplements legislation.

Dr Byrne encouraged anyone seeking information to contact the FSAI via its website and the Advice line for the most recent updates regarding food safety best practices.

"We urge food businesses to ensure they are meeting their food safety legal requirements and they should also take full advantage of the information and support provided," she added