William Saurin defends safety after box cutting blade contamination claim
In a statement sent to FoodQualityNews.com, William Saurin confirmed that there had been a customer complaint after a “metallic foreign body”, more specifically a 6x1.5cm box cutting blade, was found in a tin of beef bourguignon marketed by the company.
A batch of the product, a 400g can of beef bourguignon manufactured at the company’s Lagny sur Marne site, have been removed from shelves in the store the affected product was bought.
A statement was made by the company when a man in France reported suffering a cut in his mouth after eating from the can.
No abnormality detected
Having reviewed it safety measures, the company has reiterated its confidence in the safety of its products.
The statement, which was translated from French, said: “The company immediately verified the results of all tests carried out throughout manufacturing, all of which were compliant.”
“In addition, our traceability measures on materials and ingredients did not detect any abnormality.”
“William Saurin has manufactured and marketed beef bourguignon for many years in tins and to-date has experienced no incidents such as this.”
However, the statement added that it could not explain how the cutting blade came to be in the tin.
Legal action
The man, who claims to have cut his lip before realising the blade was in his mouth, is now pursuing legal action against William Saurin.
The firm has contacted the consumer for more information on the affected can, the company confirmed.
“It seems surprising that a cutter blade with a length of 6cm by 1.5cm could go unnoticed in a tin, in a pan or on a plate,” the statement added.
“In addition, it seems difficult when using a fork, to raise it to your mouth with realising.”
Whilst the company claim there is no proof that the box cutter actually came from the company, it added: “We cannot explain how a blade cutter could get into a can.”
