Almost 100 people across Australia have now fallen ill after a wide-spread recall of spinach products containing toxic, unsafe plant material.

Authorities have urged NSW, ACT and Victorian residents to throw out baby spinach products sold at Coles, ALDI, Woolworths and Costco, after they were linked to several people developing “possible food-related toxic reactions”.

Which products are impacted in the spinach recall?

The advice from Food Standards Australia New Zealand is to throw out Riviera Farms Baby Spinach 350g and 1kg products that have been available for sale at Costco Wholesale in NSW, ACT and Victoria.

The use by dates are from 16 December 2022 up to and including 28 December 2022.

ALDI is recalling Fresh Salad Co Fresh and Fast Stir Fry, which has been on sale at ALDI stores in Victoria. The used by date of impacted products are 24 December, 2022.

Woolworths is recalling Woolworths Chicken Cobb Salad and Woolworths Chickpea Falafel Salad. The products have been available for sale at Woolworths and Woolworths Metro stores in NSW, ACT, QLD and VIC. Impacted use by dates are: Woolworths Chicken Cobb Salad 270g USE BY 20/DEC and Woolworths Chickpea Falafel Salad 290g USE BY 20/DEC, USE BY 22/DEC.

Coles is recalling several spinach products. The products have been available for sale at Coles and Coles Express stores in QLD, NSW, ACT, VIC, SA and NT.

• Coles Spinach 60g,120g (UBD 23 DEC, NSW), 280g (UBD 23 DEC, VIC only)
• Coles Chef Blend Tender Leaf 150g (UBD 22 DEC, VIC, NSW, SA, NT only)
• Coles Baby Leaf Blend 300g (UBD 22 DEC, VIC, NSW, SA, NT only)
• available for sale in Coles Supermarkets and Coles Local and through Coles Online in above states.
• Coles Kitchen Green Goddess Salad 250g, 300g
• Coles Kitchen Chicken BLT Salad Bowl 240g
• Coles Kitchen Roast Pumpkin, Fetta & Walnut Salad 265g
• Coles Kitchen Smokey Mexican Salad 280g
• Coles Kitchen Egg and Spinach Pots 100g available for sale in Coles Supermarkets and through Coles Express and Coles Online in NSW, ACT, VIC and QLD.

All use by dates between 17 DEC 2022 up to and including 23 DEC 2022

According to NSW Health, initial investigations suggest the presence of an accidental contaminant in the food product.

So far NSW Health says 88 people in NSW have reported symptoms after eating baby spinach and at least 33 of these people have sought medical attention.

Meanwhile, almost a dozen Victorians have fallen ill after consuming contaminated products.

Anyone concerned about exposure to the spinach should call the Poisons Information Centre on 13 11 26.

NSW Health is urging anyone who experiences any unusual and severe symptoms to seek immediate medical attention by visiting their nearest emergency department. In the event of an emergency, call Triple Zero (000).

Reported symptoms can be severe, including:

• Delirium or confusion
• Hallucinations
• Dilated pupils
• Rapid heartbeat.
• Flushed face
• Blurred vision
• Dry mouth and skin
• Fever

Riviera Farms has released a statement:

“Riviera Farms can confirm that we have been in contact with state and federal food regulators on Thursday 15 December after immediately advising customers to withdraw a spinach product from shelves following reports of a contamination.

“Early reports are that our one-kilogram plastic tubs of spinach with a best before date of 16/12/2022 may be contaminated with a weed which can have health consequences if consumed.

“As soon as we were advised of the possible weed contamination from one of our customers, we immediately advised them to remove our impacted spinach from their shelves, and contacted state health and federal food authorities.

“There is no suggestion, and to our knowledge no possibility, that any other products have been impacted by this weed. We will be providing more information to the health and food regulators on Friday 16 December and thereafter.

“Riviera Farms has been in the business of providing fresh food since the 1880s, and we are saddened to confirm that we have likely had our first ever significant contamination incident.

“Riviera Farms has been serving the Australian community for five generations, and our staff will work with the regulators to identify what happened, who was impacted, and how we can make sure nothing like this weed contamination can occur again.”

Consumers shouldn’t eat this product and should return the products to the place of purchase for a full refund. Any consumers concerned about their health should seek medical advice.

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