SINGAPORE: A man took to social media to complain about the “insects” that he found in the food his company driver had bought for dinner. Commenters, however, told him that they looked more like maggots, which begin to appear when food is spoiled. They also urged him to contact the relevant authorities.
On the popular COMPLAINT SINGAPORE page on Thursday (Jun 19), the man wrote that the food had been ordered from a certain stall at 7 Kaki Bukit Avenue 3, which is located near the Kaki Bukit Recreation Centre.
“This shop our company driver (buys) food for dinner. Many insects were found inside the stomach of the fish being eaten. No one can eat after seeing this fishy insect,” he added.
He also posted a photo of the meal, which showed a piece of fish on a bed of rice. However, on the fish were many small cylindrical-shaped items that looked different from the rice. The post author circled these in red to indicate that these were the insects he had found.
On his post, he added a receipt from the meal as well. It was not itemized, but simply said “makan,” for which the person who ordered paid S$49.
The post author also included a picture of the stall. A quick online search confirms that the stall has been registered since at least 2023 to sell cooked food and prepared drinks at Kaki Bukit Recreation Centre. It has no social media accounts or website, however.
Facebook users who commented on the post appeared to be as horrified as the post’s author.
“This is a very serious issue,” wrote one.
“Wow! Those are not insects. Looks more like maggots,” exclaimed another.
“Oh no, so many maggots!” a netizen wrote.
One could hardly believe the food had been purchased in Singapore.
Some urged the post author to report the matter to the National Environment Agency (NEA) and the Singapore Food Agency (SFA). At the same time, one commenter suggested that the stall owner should be informed about the spoiled food. The SFA oversees food safety in Singapore, while the NEA manages many hawker centres, including ensuring public health issues, cleanliness, and maintenance.
While maggots themselves are generally not harmful, they are killed by stomach acid. However, in some cases, people who have ingested maggots have gotten bacterial infections. It’s the spoiled food where maggots are found that commonly poses a greater danger when eaten, as it could lead to food poisoning, which can cause nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea.
The Independent Singapore has reached out to the post author for further comments or updates. /TISG
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