Business / Health

Hello Fresh food kit fish leads to food poisoning

21:19 pm on 10 November 2020

Three people had to go to hospital with food poisoning after eating white fish included in a Hello Fresh home-delivery meal kit.

Photo: 123rf

The company has apologised to its customers after a batch of Trevally was found to contain elevated levels of histamine, which can cause diarrhoea, rashes and vomiting.

In a statement, Hello Fresh said it immediately contacted its customers, after their supplier alerted them to a problem with the batch on Monday night.

"While only a batch of the fish was affected, the supplier has issued a recall on this week's white fish to ensure customer safety," it said.

The company did not provide a figure on how many kits were affected, but said the number was low.

"We sincerely apologise for the impact the recall has had on customers.

"We are working closely with the supplier to investigate the root cause of the issue, and have paused the supply until the full investigation is completed," it said.

Hello Fresh said it would give customers who ordered that product a $20 refund.

The Hutt Valley District Health Board confirmed three people sought help at the emergency department after eating the fish, while another person emailed in reporting symptoms.

It said if people were concerned about their health after eating the product, they should seek medical advice via Healthline, their GP or Emergency Department.