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Ikea India customer creeped out by caterpillar in food
NEW DELHI, Sept 3, 2018 (AFP) – Ikea’s Indian unit apologised on Monday
after a diner found a caterpillar in his rice at the Swedish furniture
giant’s recently-opened first local outlet.
The store in Hyderabad opened to great fanfare only last month, the first
of 25 Ikea hopes to open by 2025 to cater to India’s 1.25 billion-strong
population and the nation’s burgeoning middle class.
Customer Abeed Mohammad tweeted photos of the caterpillar in the vegetable
biryani dish that he ordered at the store’s 1,000-seat restaurant on Friday.
After collecting samples on Saturday, officials sent notices to Ikea and
the firm which allegedly supplied the food.
It also fined Ikea 11,500 rupees ($162) for using plastic covers on dishes
and for not practising waste separation, the Press Trust of India news agency
said.
Ikea said it had the strictest guidelines when it came to food safety and
apologised to the customer for the “unfortunate experience”.
“We would like to assure him and everyone else that we are investigating
the matter currently to assess what happened and take immediate corrective
action,” Ikea India said in a statement.
“At Ikea we have the strictest guidelines when it comes to food safety and
quality as customer health and safety are something we care about deeply.”
BSS/AFP/MRI/1618 hrs