Devil's lettuce: Toxic weed harvested with baby spinach causing delirium in Australia
(2022/12/19)
- Reference: 1671474611
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2022/12/19/contaminated_baby_spinach_australia/
- Source link:
Some 130 salad fans in Australia got more than they bargained for when picking up grub where contaminated baby spinach was an ingredient – including hallucinations and delirium.
Food Standards Australia New Zealand has [1]yanked several products including packaged salads and stir fry mixes from shelves of retailers Costco, Woolworths, Aldi and Coles across New South Wales.
The tainted veg is thought to originate from Riviera Farms in Victoria and the problem is described as "potential contamination with unsafe plant material."
[2]
The company [3]said : "It appears these products, which were grown on a farm in Victoria and shipped to stores in NSW, have been contaminated with a weed which can have health consequences if consumed.
[4]
[5]
"Riviera Farms advised authorities immediately after being alerted by one of our retailers and we will continue to work closely with health and food regulators as investigations continue."
The symptoms reported include delirium or confusion, hallucinations, dilated pupils, rapid heartbeat, flushed face, blurred vision, dry mouth and skin, and fever.
[6]
Investigation has led the food safety regulator to believe that toxic weeds were harvested alongside the spinach and accidentally included in the product.
[7]Woman forced to sell 4-bed house after crypto exchange wrongly refunded $7.2m
[8]Mullet over: Aussie boys' school tells kids 'business in the front, party in the back' hairstyle is 'not acceptable'
[9]Mortal wombat: 4 generations of women fight for their lives against murderous marsupial
[10]Aussie immunology legend consults Twitter for his local off-licence opening hours
Dr Brett Summerell, chief scientist at Sydney's Royal Botanic Gardens, [11]told The Guardian he suspected a variety of nightshade. "When young, they are just a few dark green leaves which is probably not that much different to spinach," he said. "You're harvesting all these leafy greens now at a very young age, sometimes it can be quite difficult [to identify]."
He went on to caution people against seeking out such plants to get high: "People might be tempted to go out picking weeds thinking that they'll get some sort of high [but] it's really important to remember yes, there might be a hallucinogenic side to this, but there's a whole lot of really horrible health issues.
"Whether it's a mushroom or whether it's the sorts of weeds, if you don't know what you're eating, don't eat it."
Michael Coote, chief executive of industry body [12]Ausveg , said: "It is another piece of plant matter from a weed that has been found on this particular farm that has made it through the harvest and packing process and then into products. It's not the spinach itself that is causing these health issues."
[13]
As of the weekend, at least 33 people have sought medical attention after eating the contaminated spinach. Customers are being told to return affected products to the place of purchase for a full refund. ®
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[1] https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/industry/foodrecalls/recalls/Pages/default.aspx
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Y6DtDs6WvxYdpUzeFX8uRQAAAAc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://www.rivierafarms.com.au/
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y6DtDs6WvxYdpUzeFX8uRQAAAAc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Y6DtDs6WvxYdpUzeFX8uRQAAAAc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y6DtDs6WvxYdpUzeFX8uRQAAAAc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2022/08/31/crypto_dotcom_australia_refund/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2021/03/31/boys_school_mullet_ban/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2020/06/08/wombat_attack/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2020/04/28/immunologist_dan_murphys_twitter/
[11] https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/dec/19/likely-a-nightshade-australians-urged-not-to-seek-out-spinach-products-for-recreational-high
[12] https://ausveg.com.au/
[13] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Y6DtDs6WvxYdpUzeFX8uRQAAAAc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[14] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Food Standards Australia New Zealand has [1]yanked several products including packaged salads and stir fry mixes from shelves of retailers Costco, Woolworths, Aldi and Coles across New South Wales.
The tainted veg is thought to originate from Riviera Farms in Victoria and the problem is described as "potential contamination with unsafe plant material."
[2]
The company [3]said : "It appears these products, which were grown on a farm in Victoria and shipped to stores in NSW, have been contaminated with a weed which can have health consequences if consumed.
[4]
[5]
"Riviera Farms advised authorities immediately after being alerted by one of our retailers and we will continue to work closely with health and food regulators as investigations continue."
The symptoms reported include delirium or confusion, hallucinations, dilated pupils, rapid heartbeat, flushed face, blurred vision, dry mouth and skin, and fever.
[6]
Investigation has led the food safety regulator to believe that toxic weeds were harvested alongside the spinach and accidentally included in the product.
[7]Woman forced to sell 4-bed house after crypto exchange wrongly refunded $7.2m
[8]Mullet over: Aussie boys' school tells kids 'business in the front, party in the back' hairstyle is 'not acceptable'
[9]Mortal wombat: 4 generations of women fight for their lives against murderous marsupial
[10]Aussie immunology legend consults Twitter for his local off-licence opening hours
Dr Brett Summerell, chief scientist at Sydney's Royal Botanic Gardens, [11]told The Guardian he suspected a variety of nightshade. "When young, they are just a few dark green leaves which is probably not that much different to spinach," he said. "You're harvesting all these leafy greens now at a very young age, sometimes it can be quite difficult [to identify]."
He went on to caution people against seeking out such plants to get high: "People might be tempted to go out picking weeds thinking that they'll get some sort of high [but] it's really important to remember yes, there might be a hallucinogenic side to this, but there's a whole lot of really horrible health issues.
"Whether it's a mushroom or whether it's the sorts of weeds, if you don't know what you're eating, don't eat it."
Michael Coote, chief executive of industry body [12]Ausveg , said: "It is another piece of plant matter from a weed that has been found on this particular farm that has made it through the harvest and packing process and then into products. It's not the spinach itself that is causing these health issues."
[13]
As of the weekend, at least 33 people have sought medical attention after eating the contaminated spinach. Customers are being told to return affected products to the place of purchase for a full refund. ®
Get our [14]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/industry/foodrecalls/recalls/Pages/default.aspx
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Y6DtDs6WvxYdpUzeFX8uRQAAAAc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://www.rivierafarms.com.au/
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y6DtDs6WvxYdpUzeFX8uRQAAAAc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Y6DtDs6WvxYdpUzeFX8uRQAAAAc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y6DtDs6WvxYdpUzeFX8uRQAAAAc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2022/08/31/crypto_dotcom_australia_refund/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2021/03/31/boys_school_mullet_ban/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2020/06/08/wombat_attack/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2020/04/28/immunologist_dan_murphys_twitter/
[11] https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/dec/19/likely-a-nightshade-australians-urged-not-to-seek-out-spinach-products-for-recreational-high
[12] https://ausveg.com.au/
[13] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Y6DtDs6WvxYdpUzeFX8uRQAAAAc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[14] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Version 1.0
I remember all of those symptoms after a party when I was in college when we were all chewing Quaaludes and then I had to walk home about four miles that night across Oxford to my flat after midnight ... no problems for me at all and ever since I've been fine whenever I have any symptoms like these. So learning to work with symptoms was educational I guess.
Australia
Jellied Eel
Where even the salad greens want to kill you.
consumers report hallucinations, dilated pupils
Howard Sway
Spinach is making them go pop-eyed?
Scott 26
whereas, in East Australia, we get the Devil's Lettuce growing in the supermarket, ready for a pick-your-own salad: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/dakn-save-interesting-gardening-cannabis-plant-growing-in-supermarket-carpark-bush/F7G6ZE4A7BAHRCYZYPCCNRL7HI/
Someone
WolfFan
Mixed Drop Bear food into the greens. This means two things:
1. Lots of weirded out Aussies (weirder than usual, that is)
2. Lots of hungry, angry, Drop Bears. Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Re: Someone
Version 1.0
Back in the 60's when having a bunch of weed seeds was quite common we threw them into the ground in front of the police station and watched them grow up - we were laughing because it seems the police never noticed what they were until the local newspaper posted their story - LOL.
The symptoms reported include delirium or confusion, hallucinations, dilated pupils, rapid heartbeat, flushed face, blurred vision, dry mouth and skin, and fever. You must be a windows Admin on Patch Tuesday... I don't miss those days!