I was so grossed out I let time Fly by since the discovery but now i've lost my steam and i don't really know what to expect the company or the grocery store to do about this.
2007-04-23 14:43:16 · 10 answers · asked by Jess~ness~ 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
It would be quite safe for you to eat those pickles. The salty brine, and the boiling process that the pickles went through to make them has killed all possible germs that could have leaked into the pickles from the bug. And really, how do they know that you didn't just add the bug to the jar after the fact? The amount of time that you have let pass since then speaks to the fact that you weren't really upset about it to begin with.
I know exactly how finding unusual and unwanted things in our food can affect us. Many years ago (about 15) I made myself a peanut butter sandwich, because I was too lazy to cook for myself when I got home late from work. In the process of chewing, I felt something hard in my teeth, so I isolated it out with my tongue and spit it out onto my hand. It looked like a piece of a tooth, but the lighting wasn't very good and it was shaped strangely, so I went searching for my magnifying glass and a brighter light. When I saw that tiny perfect mouse molar in my palm I froze. And then I placed the magnifying glass down on the coffee table with the tooth, and went to the guest bath--barely making it before I started throwing up. I told a lot of people what I had found that day. I even tried writing the company a letter (this was before personal computers became quite so popular), which I never got a reply to. To this day I can not eat peanut butter. Just the thought of it makes my stomach clench.
You can try to do something about the bug in your pickles. I don't think you are going to get much of anywhere with it. But you obviously never got sick from it either, so what can you expect them to do for you? And good luck about ever being able to eat pickles again.
2007-04-23 14:59:53 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Contacting the manufacturer will help them better regulate their quality and control process PLUS they will give Free Coupons for More Product. (Ha, ha -- just what you wanted huh>however, they may sell other products that would interest you.)
Usually you would need the product code from the jar, but you could contact them regardless. Contact information is usually on the product label. You could also google the information by manufacturer name. Most companies have websites.
If you had returned the jar to the Grocer, your money would probably have been refunded or the product exchanged for another product of your choice. Most grocers require the product and/or original reciept returned. Contact the specific grocer for the store's policies.
I had similiar experiences twice and chose the coupon option both times ... once found a hair net in a frozen pot pie and once found ???? in a can of tuna.
Since you were not injured or made physically ill, your chances of any legal action are nil. But the Fly's family may have a claim as death by pickle jar would not be considered "natural causes"?
2007-04-23 15:00:57 · answer #2 · answered by ... 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I found a feather in a package of dates once. I taped it to a letter and sent it to the company, questioning the conditions in their packing plant.
I received a reply fairly quickly, they stated that they weren't sure that it was a foreign object. It WAS a feather, I know what a bird feather is. They sent me coupons to replace my package and a couple of extras.
You could contact the grocery store and they may replace the jar, but they really aren't responsible for the bug as the product wasn't packaged there. The company probably has a website or phone number on the jar you could call.
Nice pun by the way.
2007-04-23 15:02:39 · answer #3 · answered by joeanonymous 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well believe it or not, some bugs are permitted in food (there are specific limits) so the company may not legally have to do anything for you. But they generally want to keep you as a customer, so they will likely send you more product. It is gross, but probably harmless (there is a lot of stuff you just don't want to know about out there). But I know what you mean about losing your steam. In the future call the company's consumer complaint department - just be nice when you do it. Remember, you can catch a lot more flies with honey than with vinegar (oops, sorry, probably not the most appropriate metaphor here).
2007-04-23 14:51:28 · answer #4 · answered by Tony Z 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
You're unlikely to get more than a refund from the store or coupons for more product from the company.
Now, had you NOT found it, and suffered some kind of injury, your case might just make some attorney very rich and happy.
2007-04-23 15:02:04 · answer #5 · answered by open4one 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If the bug was alive, then it got in there after you opened the pickles. No way a bug could live through the canning process.
2016-05-17 08:26:32 · answer #6 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Take it back to the store and see if they will give you a refund. If that doesn't work, write to the manufacturer.
2007-04-23 14:47:16 · answer #7 · answered by Catherine B 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Was it a rare stink pickle bug?
2007-04-23 14:47:08 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Go to a lawyer. Before anything else, go to a lawyer.
2007-04-23 14:47:29 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Report it to the FDA
2007-04-23 14:49:35 · answer #10 · answered by the king USA 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋