A major New Zealand supermarket chain has pulled a brand of Australian strawberries off its shelves after needles were found in a punnet sourced from Western Australia.
The needles were found in a sample of Choice brand strawberries sold at a Countdown supermarket in Auckland.
“At Countdown we take food safety very seriously and we have withdrawn any remaining Choice strawberries from sale from Countdown, SuperValue and FreshChoice supermarkets while we investigate this with our suppliers,” Countdown said in a statement.
It also said it was in contact with both Australian and New Zealand authorities investigating the matter.
Countdown, which owns 181 supermarkets across New Zealand, has urged shoppers to cut up any strawberries already purchased.
Customers can also return punnets of the affected brand of strawberries for a full refund.
The Choice brand was sold throughout New Zealand Supermarkets last week.
There have been no reports of any illness or injury related to the strawberries in New Zealand.
Choice berries are not among those recalled in Australia.
