Brian Nagele
Have you ever thought about how many people have contact with your food before you start eating it?
The ingredients are all made in factories or processed on farms. Then it gets packaged and shipped to the store or restaurant where you find it.
There are probably dozens of people that had something to do with the ingredients of the sandwich you had for lunch.
In that context, it isn’t hard to believe that some consumers have found disgusting things in their groceries or food bags. But it’s still upsetting to find something in your food that shouldn’t be there.
Here are the 20 grossest things found in food!
I hope you have a strong stomach, because some of these food horror stories are truly disgusting.
Cockroach in the Hash Browns
In 2012, someone posted a picture on Reddit that turned my stomach.
Their breakfast came with a hashbrown that they claimed had a cockroach cooked into it—discovered only after biting it.
Roaches may be a delicacy in some parts of the world, but this man didn’t think this was fine dining.
Condom in Big Mac
William Smith of Easton, Pennsylvania, bought two Big Macs at a McDonald’s drive-thru.
He ate the first sandwich but claimed he found a condom in the second.
The case ended up being dismissed due to a lack of proof.
Dead Frog in Can of Pepsi
Florida is home to many strange news stories, like Fred Denegri finding the remains of an animal in his Pepsi can.
The FDA tests later confirmed it was a dead frog.
Pepsi subsequently claimed it couldn’t be responsible because of the speed of its packing process, with the implication being it must’ve hopped in there after he opened the can.
Glass in Baby Food
Back in 2015, Beech-Nut Nutrition had to recall four-ounce jars of baby food after one was found with glass within it.
Thankfully, it never reached any little ones as the company disposed of all the products in the batch. This could have been tragic!
Mouse in the Loaf of Bread
In my opinion, there are few things as nightmarish as finding a dead mouse pressed into the edge of the loaf.
In 2009, Stephen Forse found one while making sandwiches for his children in his Kidlington, Oxfordshire home.
Premier Foods was fined for failing to maintain British health standards. I’m happy to say Mr. Forse’s family did not have any adverse health reactions.
Razor Blade in the Ice Cream
Stephanie Granger of east Texas sat down to enjoy a carton of Great Value brand of ice cream.
After only a few bites, she cut her lip on part of a broken razor blade.
Understandably, Granger complained to Wal-Mart, who naturally apologized.
Severed Finger in Frozen Custard
Most stories of severed body parts in food are, I’m thankful to say, hoaxes.
However, when Clarence Stowers put part of a severed finger in his mouth while eating some frozen custard, no one questioned if he was telling the truth.
It later transpired one of the workers at Kohl’s Frozen Custard, where he bought the pint, had earlier had part of his finger cut off in an accident with a food processor. Yikes!
Tooth in the Candy Bar
On New Year’s Day 2010, Sue Calhoun picked up a Milky Way candy bar.
She had no idea the candy bar was going to bite back. Calhoun bit down on something hard and thought it was a peanut until she realized it was someone’s tooth.
To make up for the inconvenience, Mars Candy gave her coupons for some free candy.
Dead Mouse in a Curry Jar
Cate Barret was getting ready to have dinner with her husband when she opened a jar of Asda Extra Special curry sauce and found a large, dark lump inside.
She pulled it out to discover a dead mouse marinated in tikka masala-flavored sauce.
I’m relieved to confirm that Asda and the British Environmental Health Agency launched a full investigation.
Metal in doughnut
In 2021, a Krispy Kreme plant in England was fined after a customer found metal fragments in doughnuts they purchased there.
The company admitted it was the result of damaged equipment at their facility.
Magistrates were stern with their findings, noting a company of its size had a responsibility to ensure appropriate workplace safety measures.
Serrated Knife in the Sandwich Bread
Not many can claim to survive an attempt on their life by a sandwich.
John Agnesini bit into a Subway sandwich and soon discovered a stainless steel knife baked into the bread.
He sued Subway restaurants for $1 million but settled for $20,000. That’s a lot of Subway sandwiches – if he ever returns!
Glove in Loaf of Bread
You want to have some fiber in your diet, but when a woman in England found threads in her bread she thought it was too much.
Premiere Foods, the breadmakers, had accidentally baked part of an oven mitt into it.
The company insisted they were standing by the quality of its products but did admit to breaking health laws.
Chicken Head in a Happy Meal
Katherine Ortega stopped her son from biting into his McDonald’s Mighty Wings because it looked strange.
On closer examination, she discovered a chicken head had been battered and fried with the wings.
Her lawyers advised her not to sue since a chicken’s head in a bag of wings is not legally a foreign object.
Syringes in a Burger
This incident definitely counts as one of the grossest things found in food! In 2017, a woman claimed to have found part of a syringe in her McDonald’s hamburger.
The needle was small, and she thought it was plastic until it pricked her.
She needed to be vaccinated against hepatitis B, but the health inspector couldn’t find any sign of contamination in the restaurant.
Frog in a Bag of Frozen Veggies
Marty Hoffman bought a bag of frozen vegetables at a Meijer supercenter to feed her dog.
When she opened the bag, she claimed, Hoffman found a frozen frog inside.
Although there was some skepticism, Meijer believed the allegations and pulled the batch of frozen vegetables.
Bullets in Costco Hot Dog
When Olivia Chanes bit down on something hard while eating a Costco hot dog, she thought it was part of her braces. But she instead pulled a nine-millimeter round from her mouth.
After experiencing some abdominal pain, it was discovered she had swallowed one as well.
The makers of the hot dog, Hebrew National Company, claimed to have no idea how live rounds wound up in her lunch.
Black Widow in Bag of Grapes
A woman in North Carolina thought it odd when she saw fuzzy fibers all over the grapes she had in her refrigerator.
She investigated and found a black widow spider inside. Thankfully, she wasn’t bitten, which can be painful but rarely fatal.
Scorpion in a Bunch of Bananas
This tale has quite the sting! A woman in Nova Scotia bought some bananas at a local store only for her daughter to notice something odd.
Initially, she thought it was a slug but was shocked to find a scorpion over two inches long while they were trying to release the creature.
The bananas had been shipped from Guatemala and had been inspected for other insects.
Fun fact: scorpion is eaten in some parts of the world! It’s on our list of the strangest foods people actually eat.
Tampon in a Steak
The Waldorf-Astoria in New York City is one of the last places you would expect a problem with your food.
But a diner there claimed to have pulled a used tampon out of his mouth that had come from his steak.
Restaurant management released a statement saying they were conducting an investigation but had reason to believe the incident is suspicious.
Nails in Mac-and-Cheese
In England, a woman bought macaroni and cheese containing nails at a Tesco store.
She swallowed one an inch long, and at least two others were found in her food.
