Two people have sought hospital treatment after eating chocolate bars at the centre of a contamination scare, while 19 have called a hotline complaining of illness, according to the Australian Associated Press.
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Manufacturer MasterFoods ordered a massive product recall on Friday after receiving a letter claiming seven Snickers and Mars bars had been contaminated in the Sydney area, the agency said.
Retailers have been clearing the products from stores across New South Wales as police investigations continue.
In an effort to help manage the recall, MasterFoods set up a hotline over the weekend, and has already taken 2000 calls.
Masterfoods regional president Andy Weston-Webb said 19 people who had consumed the products had called the hotline complaining of illness.
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By GlobalDataTwo of the 19 sought hospital treatment, but had since returned home.
“Nineteen people did call us about feeling ill for a whole variety of reasons, stomach ache, diarrhoea, headache, vomiting and two of those went to hospital, but I am happy to say they are now back at home,” Weston-Webb said on ABC radio.
“We are talking to them – we’ll stay in contact with them to make sure they are feeling okay,” he said.
He said most of the calls to the hotline were about returning and safely disposing of the targeted products.
Company employees had contacted more than 6,000 stores over the weekend and had removed 4,000 charity boxes of the product which were also suspect, he said.
“Public safety has to remain our priority here, we can’t take a risk,” Weston-Webb said.
“We are starting to get product back now and that’s going to be our focus over the coming days.”
Weston-Webb reiterated the risk was isolated to New South Wales. “This is definitely a NSW and, more specifically, a Sydney threat,” he said. “The threat in the letter … which we received on Friday where we immediately went into correction and recalled, was (from a) third party organisation in Sydney.”
