Woolies shopper makes a terrifying discovery after breaking open her container of black seedless grapes
- Redback spider found in container of grapes
- Lani Neil bought the bowl from Woolworths
- Woolies’ ex-manager claimed to have found a snake in bananas
A Woolworths customer made an alarming discovery in a bag of grapes when she found a highly venomous redback spider among the fruit.
Lani Neil had just bought a tub of black seedless grapes from Woolworths in Redbank Plains, an hour south of Brisbane, on Saturday when she spotted the spider lurking in the middle of the bag.
Ms Neil said the arachnid was busy with cobwebs when she made the discovery just as she was leaving the shop.
She took to Facebook to vent about the situation and berated the local Woolworths for not answering her calls.
“WARNING I just bought a container of black seedless grapes from the store in Redbank Plains (Mountainview) and found a live redback spider in it,” Ms. Neil wrote.
“I tried calling the store several times, but no one picked up. (I don’t live in the area so I can’t just walk in).’
Ms Neil took the situation to Facebook and posted her concerns directly on the Woolworths page
The redback spider was found hidden among the grapes by Mrs Neil at the Woolworths shop in Redbank Plains (pictured)
A former product manager of an unspecified Woolworths store responded to the post, noting that unwanted guests like Mrs Neil’s redback spider were not an uncommon sight.
‘Occasionally we found spiders in the grapes. I once opened a box of bananas and found a live snake in between,” he said.
“We used to stock up on plates, like grapes, to tell people to use their common sense and wash them before consuming them to avoid cases like this.”
Female redback spiders, which have the distinctive red stripe down their backs, are feared throughout Australia for their potent venom.
A bite from a female can cause serious illness, but there have been no deaths since the 1950s when an antivenom was introduced.
Woolworths quickly responded to her disturbing message, assuring Ms Neil it was about the case.
After posting the shocking find online, other customers described similar incidents
“We take these kinds of reports seriously and will look into this with our team,” said the supermarket.
Ms Neil responded to a number of trolls in the post after some believed she was asking the supermarket to destroy its entire grape stock.
“I don’t think it would be too much to ask to ask someone to look at the remaining trays before people buy them,” she wrote.
Woolworths reiterated its commitment to safety when the Daily Mail asked Australia on Wednesday how it planned to avoid similar incidents.
“We take food safety very seriously and work closely with our suppliers to ensure precautions are taken on the farm,” said a Woolworths spokesman.
“We are in contact with this customer and have requested more information so that we can review this with our growers.”
A redback spider typically poses no threat of biting humans unless they disturb its web
Ms Neil said the arachnid was busy with cobwebs when she made the discovery just as she was leaving the shop.
While it is rare to be bitten by a redback, interference with their environment and web can cause the spider to become defensive and bite intruders.
Reaching into a bag of grapes and touching the redback’s webbing could have potentially resulted in a bite for Ms. Neil, requiring a trip to the hospital for a dose of antidote.
Redback bites usually include varying levels of pain around the wound, sweating, nausea, vomiting, and muscle aches.
The venom from a redback bite affects the victim’s nerves by depleting neurotransmitters and shutting down neural pathways.
There have been no recorded deaths from a redback bite since 1956, the year the antivenom was created.
