Red wine contamination triggers asthma
Creston Bay Brand wine off its shelves after discovering
dangerously high levels of sulphur dioxide in it.
Lidl, the German supermarket chain has taken bottles of Australian Creston Bay Brand wine off its shelves after discovering dangerously high levels of sulphur dioxide in it.
"Severe asthma attacks can be life-threatening. People with asthma should not open these bottles or drink the wine," said an Food Standards Agency (FSA) spokesperson.
The smell of uncorking the wine alone is believed to be able to trigger an attack in an asthmatic person. Sulphur dioxide, which can cause severe asthma attacks, was found at up to 17 times the permitted level in the australian shiraz.
The problem was discovered after a consumer in Germany complained after purchasing the wine at a Lidl store.
The bottles, which carry a picture of a kangaroo and a gum tree on the label, have now been withdrawn from sale. However, only bottles with the year 2002 displayed on the rear label are covered by the warning.
Drinking the wine is claimed to not have any harmful health effects on anyone who does not suffer from asthma, but it is believed that the taste of the shiraz would be highly unpleasant.
The wine, bottled in 2002 and priced at €4.35, was stocked at Lidl stores from October 10 this year.
Anyone who has one of these bottles is being asked to return it to the Lidl store where they bought it for a refund.
