Tesco Horror Story

cwood2112

Hi all

I hope no one interprites this as 'well they are just money grabbers' but I would like some opinions on a drama we have had with tesco recently.

My family have always shopped at tescos for as long as I can remember so as soon I moved out with my partner three weeks ago, we straight away started shopping in tescos as it is familiar to us.

We did our first weekly shop including lots of fresh veg (desperately trying to start our life together healthy!) and a bag of 'washed and ready to eat' spinach. I always ALWAYS wash fruit and veg before eating it however because the bag specifically said 'washed and ready to eat' I thought I would save some time and leave it. I cooked a meal that evening including the spinach and when finished, was putting the leftover uncooked spinach into a container to keep them fresh when I pulled out a massive dead moth. No exageration, it was about two inches long. Obviously we were utterly horrified, even more so because we had already eaten a meal using the ingredient so god knows how many germs we ate.

We took the bag and moth straight back to tescos and explained how disgusted we were and that we were changing supermarkets and they said they would start the formal complaints process and we would receive a response within three weeks.

I received the response when we got home last night and I don't have it with me to quote (would have been a good idea to bring it in to work with me!) but basically a summary of the response is as follows:

- we apologise for your recent experience
- we do strive to achieve high levels of quality
- our customers have said they want us to use less pesticides and chemicals on our fresh produce therefore mistakes like this can happen
- you should always wash fresh fruit and veg thoroughly
- here's a £10 voucher as compensation

Maybe it's just me, but as far as I'm concerned, the above response is completely unacceptable on so many levels, they made it sound as though it was our fault and took none of the responsibility for the error. Does anyone agree? Moreover, £10 compensation is more of an insult than if they had given us nothing but at least a sincere apology!

When we originally said we were changing supermarkets, I admit it was a fairly empty threat and although we were disgusted, we always intended on going back and accepted that it was a one off error, however now I am livid and we will no longer be shopping at tesco for good.

I would like to take this issue further but am not sure who to write to or whether there is even any point? Is there a body who deals with complaints like this? Surely the Food Standards Agency or someone would push this further?

Does anyone have any thoughts and/or similar experiences?

nonnatus

I'm afraid I think that their response was perfectly adequate.

They gave you an apology and a £10 voucher.

It's irrelevant how long you've been a customer for, or how loyal to Tesco's you were. They didn't put the moth in your spinach on purpose, it was an accident. And accidents happen. You weren't damaged by it and no doubt you'll wash everything in the future for fear of it happening again.

Sorry

inkypinky999

take its photo and put on facebook!..let the world see

cwood2112

Thank you for your responses.

I understand what you are saying about it being fresh food and accidents happen, and I agree. However I am angry that the bags reads 'washed and ready to eat' when it has clearly not been washed very well and is not ready to eat when there's bugs in it. That was the main point I was trying to make, and then to say 'all fruit and vegetables should be washed' in their response just irritated me more. I'm well aware of food hygiene, but if a supermarket have said they've washed something, I would like to trust them.

I wasn't really trying to achieve anything, and I will just leave it and shop elsewhere, I just thought that Tesco appreciated loyalty enough to accept a little more responsibility.

McKneff

Potatoes say 'washed' but I wouldnt dream of not washing them before I either boiled them as new or washed them after peeling for mash.

Think your self lucky you got a tenner.

It would have been worse if you all had been chomping away and someone found HALF a moth on the plate.:rotfl::rotfl:

I think your going oTT to be honest.

In all honesty, you could have dropped the whole lot into a bowl, been talking, swished it around, picked the whole lot up and the moth may still have been there.

mazza111

McKneff wrote: »

In all honesty, you could have dropped the whole lot into a bowl, been talking, swished it around, picked the whole lot up and the moth may still have been there.

Which is probably what Tesco did on a grander scale. Even ready to eat fruit and veg won't be washed to the standard you would probably do at home. It will probably be rinsed in salt water and drained.

No offence, I'm glad it happened to you and not me, I have a phobia of those things and their relatives that people find attractive.

When I worked in a different supermarket, we did take manufactured goods more serious. Like when an old man brought an orange back with a dead bug in it, no signs of anything outside, the fruit had grown around the bug, so it was nature. But anything manufactured with something in it, like tinned goods would be taken more seriously and sent away for analysis. Think your ready to eat spinach may fall in between these 2 categories. TBH I'd take the money and learn the lesson that people aren't as thorough as you at washing veg

eleanor73

I'd be annoyed but I don't get the whole 'loyalty' thing. If someone spends a certain amount on a product and it isn't up to scratch it shouldn't matter if you've shopped there forever or if it's your first time.

faerie~spangles

:rotfl::rotfl:TESCO HORROR STORY:rotfl::rotfl:

transient

cwood2112 wrote: »

Hi all
although we were disgusted, we always intended on going back and accepted that it was a one off error

Says it all.

You will get this i other supermarkets as well occasionally

Faith177

Something similer happened to me when I was about 4 I was drinking fruit juice and found an earwig in it. Things like this happen all the time.

You mentioned how many germs you may have consumed but if you cooked the spinach then these would have died or that's my understanding on cooking processes. Correct me if I'm wrong though.

I think they have done well by you giving you £10. Yes it was horrible and possibly a little distressing but it was an accident.

How do you know that the moth didn't get in the bag after it was washed but before it was bagged?

I think you should just say thanks for the tenner spend it on something nice for yourself and move on

pineapple

I've always been a bit suspicious of leafy greens festering away in a plastic bag whether 'washed' or not. So while I wouldn't expect to find a bug in it, I do rinse nonetheless. In fact sometimes on TV you see a scene where someone dumps some ready mixed salad out of the bag onto a plate and I find it jaw dropping! :eek:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/naomi-starkman/packaged-salad-bacteria-s_b_445275.html

http://blogs.webmd.com/healthy-recipe-doctor/2010/02/bagged-salad-and-bacteria-what-you-can.html
Quote:
The longer the greens sit in the bags and the closer to their use-by date, the more chance the bacteria has to multiply.