Slug Pellets and harvest interval

[Just a farmer]

Today my sister messaged me a picture of a box of supermarket bought raspberries with a little blue pellet sat on the corner of the box.

She said it had fallen out of one of the raspberries as she was feeding it to her 8 month old daughter. The raspberries had been washed but as it was inside the berry it went undetected.

Looking at harvest intervals for slug pellets its as short as 7 days for strawberries, 14 for lettuce and 18 for potatoes. Potatoes sit below ground and harvest techniques in my opinion are pretty effective at removing any left over pellets, but for the above ground edibles with lots of crevasse for a pellet to 'hide' is this harvest interval too short?

Is there another quality oversight that could have happened between field to mouth?

I can't help but say I'm a little shocked.

EDIT > Just to update anyone reading this thread it was found that the pellet (which looked identical to a slug pellet) did not have the same composition as a slug pellet. After dissection it was found to be more spongy and plastic like. Probably something leftover during packaging.

 

[Still Farming]

Was it uk or imported?
Assurance schemes,traceability,trading standards Food Hygiene dept Councils ,fb, the lot ,throw it at them,terrible?

 

[Just a farmer]

British raspberries by a well known supermarket, fully assured and traced with details of the grower and county written on the packet.

I'm not after blood so won't post details on a public forum but I do think it needs to be asked if those harvest intervals for a pelleted poison which can last for weeks are good enough when used on above ground edibles?!

Freak accident or a common occurrence? Certainly the first time I've seen it happen.

 

[Still Farming]

British raspberries by a well known supermarket, fully assured and traced with details of the grower and county written on the packet.

I'm not after blood so won't post details on a public forum but I do think it needs to be asked if those harvest intervals for a pelleted poison which can last for weeks are good enough when used on above ground edibles?!

Freak accident or a common occurrence? Certainly the first time I've seen it happen.

What if killed kiddy?
Trading standards and EHO council dept need informing whatever.

 

[Brisel]

Was it uk or imported?
Assurance schemes,traceability,trading standards Food Hygiene dept Councils ,fb, the lot ,throw it at them,terrible?

That might get all slug pellets banned...

I do think the retailer ought to know about this. Has she kept the packaging & receipt?

Yes, 7 days is too short a harvest interval IMO. for every pellet, there will be some dust on the fruit too if broadcast. I've had to spray an insecticide onto caulis just before the cutting gang went in due to aphids. All perfectly legal on the label.

 

[Still Farming]

That might get all slug pellets banned...

I do think the retailer ought to know about this. Has she kept the packaging & receipt?

Yes, 7 days is too short a harvest interval IMO. for every pellet, there will be some dust on the fruit too if broadcast. I've had to spray an insecticide onto caulis just before the cutting gang went in due to aphids. All perfectly legal on the label.

Yes yes yes .
But what if kid died?
With all food processing and procedures the principals of HACCP are to be followed and in place to stop this.
Needs looking into what ever.

 

[Just a farmer]

I have already discussed with my sister that she needs to keep the packaging and pellet (that she already chucked in the bin) and contact the supermarket to inform them of this.

 

[Still Farming]

I have already discussed with my sister that she needs to keep the packaging and pellet (that she already chucked in the bin) and contact the supermarket to inform them of this.

They'll say sorry and give you a voucher.
Council depts need telling not retailers.

 

[Princess Pooper]

Can't see how it happened in the growing crop. Most raspberries are well above ground, so even if spun on, most pellets wouldn't hit the fruit. When growing, the fruit is hanging on the hulls, so a slug pellet couldn't get inside even if spun onto it.

Only way I could see it falling in would be if it had got lodged in the leaves and a picker knocked it into an already picked punnet. I can't believe anyone would spread pellets around eg a cold store holding picked fruit because that would be such high risk. I think freak accident (or sabotage by a disgrunted picker )

 

[Spencer]

Errrrr is it just me being sceptical but how does a slug pellet get into the centre of a Raspberry whilst still growing in field? Last time I saw a raspberry in field the centre of the thing wasn’t open

 

[Still Farming]

Errrrr is it just me being sceptical but how does a slug pellet get into the centre of a Raspberry whilst still growing in field? Last time I saw a raspberry in field the centre of the thing wasn’t open

More to it we think?

 

[Spencer]

More to it we think?

 

[Just a farmer]

Finally got a chance to head across and search through the bin for the raspberry box and pellet. My first question was is it 100% a slug pellet and if so, which one.

After finding it I put it side by side with a pellet from my own chemcial shed and they looked identical. I then got a knife and solid plate to crush it. Rather than breaking up like a slug pellet would it was spongy and more plastic like. It did cut, but like I say it was more squashy and sponge like than what I'd expect a slug pellet to be like. It wouldn't crush.

So I'm embarrased to say this blue pellet that resembles a slug pellet is probably a plastic like material and I've wasted everyones time scaremongering with this thread.

The fact the raspberry was contaminated with something still remains, but I think we can dismiss that it was a slug pellet. Although I'm embarresed my sister and I jumped the gun a bit expecting the worst, I'm also glad as the implications of poison getting though compared to packaging(?) are very different.

I'm going to edit in the first post these findings so no one else glances at the thread and leaves with the wrong conclusions that my sister and I originally had.

 

[Al R]

Finally got a chance to head across and search through the bin for the raspberry box and pellet. My first question was is it 100% a slug pellet and if so, which one.

After finding it I put it side by side with a pellet from my own chemcial shed and they looked identical. I then got a knife and solid plate to crush it. Rather than breaking up like a slug pellet would it was spongy and more plastic like. It did cut, but like I say it was more squashy and sponge like than what I'd expect a slug pellet to be like. It wouldn't crush.

So I'm embarrased to say this blue pellet that resembles a slug pellet is probably a plastic like material and I've wasted everyones time scaremongering with this thread.

The fact the raspberry was contaminated with something still remains, but I think we can dismiss that it was a slug pellet. Although I'm embarresed my sister and I jumped the gun a bit expecting the worst, I'm also glad as the implications of poison getting though compared to packaging(?) are very different.

I'm going to edit in the first post these findings so no one else glances at the thread and leaves with the wrong conclusions that my sister and I originally had.

Could it be something like a girls bead or aqua bead? Does your sister have older children that could’ve maybe dropped 1 etc?

Still worrying for your sister whatever it is but could it be from the washing/packaging plant?

 

[Brisel]

Yes yes yes .
But what if kid died?
With all food processing and procedures the principals of HACCP are to be followed and in place to stop this.
Needs looking into what ever.

“What if kid died?” Do you think there is no research done on the environmental fate of these products? If it were that dangerous it wouldn’t be approved and at least would have a much longer harvest interval. I think there is too much speculation going on here. Raspberries aren’t grown in open fields where stuff is broadcast all over.

 

[Still Farming]

“What if kid died?” Do you think there is no research done on the environmental fate of these products? If it were that dangerous it wouldn’t be approved and at least would have a much longer harvest interval. I think there is too much speculation going on here. Raspberries aren’t grown in open fields where stuff is broadcast all over.

Plenty of research done.
You only have to google toxicology on products to find out.
Why was /is pellets in it then?
The relevant Authorities will find out if told?
But as edited thread reads looks like was NOT slug pellets afterwards so therefore all of this thread is irrelevant

 

[Spencer]

Think as edited the OP has done unfortunately what a lot of the general public do nowadays. Jump to conclusions and post it straight away on the internet!

 

[Still Farming]

Think as edited the OP has done unfortunately what a lot of the general public do nowadays. Jump to conclusions and post it straight away on the internet!

Maybe needs deleting then
@Clive , @Chris F see what they say.

 

[Brisel]

Plenty of grounds for this thread to exist if it were a slug pellet found in the raspberries, but we just don't know the truth.

 

[deleted user 837354]

I doubt a kid would swallow a pellet as they deliberately taste horrible.