What to do if you find a foreign object in your food

When I was eating tuna fish mixed with mayonnaise recently, I bit down on something hard. I spit it out and the hard object looked like a piece of my tooth.

However, at a dentist appointment about a week later, the dentist said it was a piece of porcelain.

When I called the local health department, I was told it only deals with local issues, such as problems with food in restaurants.

I called Chicken of the Sea and was told I’d received a postage free envelope to send the fragments and the tuna can to them.

After examining the items, Chicken of the Sea sent this response:

The object you provided to use had a normal appearance that did not appear to be cooked. If this plastic or porcelain had been put into the can inside of our facility, it would have been cooked as part of packaging process.

What? A piece of porcelain would look different if it was cooked?

Now, I don’t have the pieces or the tuna can so I can’t send them to a federal agency.

I looked up what you’re supposed to do if you find something in your food. I found this advice from the U.S. Department of Agriculture:

If you have a problem with a food product…

Separate government agencies are responsible for protecting different segments of the food supply. If you have experienced a problem with a food product, be sure to contact the appropriate public health organization.

For help with meat, poultry, and processed egg products:

Call the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 888-674-6854 or report the complaint online.

For help with restaurant food problems:

Call the Health Department in your city, county, or state. Here’s a list of State Departments of Public Health.

For help with non-meat food products – cereals, fish, produce, fruit juice, pastas, and cheeses

For complaints about food products that don’t contain meat or poultry – such as cereal – call or write to the Food and Drug Administration. Check your local phone book under U.S. Government, Health and Human Services, to find an FDA office in your area. The FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition can be reached at 888-723-3366.

In order for the USDA to investigate a problem with meat, poultry, or egg products, you must have:

1. The original container or packaging.
2. Any foreign object that you might have discovered in the product.
3. Any uneaten portion of the food; refrigerate or freeze it.

Information you should be ready to tell the Hotline on the phone includes:

1. Name, address, and phone number.
2. Brand name, product name, and manufacturer of the product.
3. The size and package type.
4. Can or package codes, not UPC bar codes, and dates.
5. Establishment number or EST usually found in the circle or shield near the "USDA passed and inspected" phrase.
6. Name and location of the store, as well as the date that you purchased the product.
7. You can complain to the store or the product's manufacturer if you don't choose to make a formal complaint to the USDA.

If you think you’re ill, see a physician:

If an injury or illness allegedly resulted from use of a meat or poultry product, you will also need to tell the Hotline staff about the type, symptoms, time of occurrence, and name of attending health professional, if applicable.

The bottom line:

If you sense there's a problem with any food product, don't consume it. "When in doubt, throw it out."

So, I’ll file a complaint with the FDA. I have the photo above, and a photo of the can code. I’ll also ask Chicken of the Sea to send back the fragments. I wonder if they still have them.

Fortunately, I wasn't injured by biting down the pieces.

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