SFA looking into incident of woman biting into a fishhook in her meal

SINGAPORE: After a woman ordered a pan-fried fish meal at an eatery in Yishun, she unfortunately bit into something sharp, which caused her tooth pain and swelling. Upon checking, she found she had bit into a fishhook in her meal, which was 2.5 cm long.

Shin Min Daily News reported that this took place on Nov 22 at Heng Hua Restaurant at Block 748 Yishun Street 72.  The report added that at the time of the incident, she was having dinner with a colleague, a Mr Yang.

When she took her first bite, she immediately felt a terrible pain in her mouth. At first, she thought that she had only bitten into a fish bone, but when she removed the offending object from her mouth, she discovered the fishhook.

Mr Yang, 66, asked how a foreign object of this size went unnoticed when the meal was prepared. He noted that if someone swallowed a fishhook, it could have caused severe injuries or even death.

After the two took pictures of the metal fishhook as proof of what had happened, they quickly told the staff about the situation.  The staff apologised for the incident there and then and asked if the customer wanted her meal to be replaced.

The woman, however, said no to this offer.

Later, as they were paying for their bill, the manager of the restaurant gave them another apology. The cost of their meal, she said, would be taken care of by the restaurant.

Moreover, the management of the restaurant said that the medical expenses the woman incurred would be covered by them. The woman then gave them her contact information, and in turn, jotted down the eatery’s.

Shin Min Daily News reported that because the woman experienced swelling in her mouth two days after her dinner at Yishun, she sought medical attention. Fortunately, there was no infection at the site.

The woman’s colleague, Mr Yang, has called what occurred and that food establishments need to stay vigilant.

Calling the incident “absolutely unacceptable,” Mr Yang said it should serve as a reminder for food establishments to remain vigilant.

He told Shin Min, “We hope this will serve as a reminder to businesses and the public to be more vigilant.”

The owner of a restaurant, Ms Wang, said that the incident is now under investigation from the Singapore Food Agency ( SFA), adding that his Staff is fully cooperating.

She is aware, however, that customer trust could be damaged by such incidents.

“We value the trust of every customer. We also attach great importance to this matter, have conducted a comprehensive self-examination, and strengthened our internal management,” said the restaurant owner, adding that they are “deeply sorry for the concern this incident has caused our customers./ TISG

Read also: “Scared to buy outside food now” — Woman says after finding a foreign object, possibly a “steel wool or metal scrubber piece” in her meal