A CUSTOMER says he was ‘sickened’ to find a maggot in a tin of chopped tomatoes.

The shopper said he had contacted the store where he bought the offending item and had been offered a £5 voucher for the inconvenience.

The customer, who wished to be referred to as Mr Khan, said he purchased the tin of KTC Chopped Tinned Tomatoes from the Asia Continental Cash and Carry off Whalley Range, Blackburn.

KTC Edibles said it was aware of the complaint and had apologised.

Managers also assured customers that their products were by a ‘BRC (British Retail Consortium) accredited manufacturer’.

The tomato products are used almost daily by many families to cook, amongst other dishes, home-made curries. Mr Khan said the tomatoes were not past the sell-by date.

He told us: “I opened a tomato tin and shockingly there was a maggot in there. “I then checked the tomato tin to look at the sell-by date. I felt sick when I saw it and then rang the company.

“They said send us photos and videos which I ended up doing as proof.

“They then told me send the item in post ‘we will send you a voucher for £5’.

“I am not sure how I am going to put a contaminated item in the post. They said once we look at it then we will send you the voucher.”

He said he was only speaking out as he wanted people to check tinned products before emptying them.

He said: “I am lucky I inspected the can.

“I feel this is something that the public need to know as children, adults and older people eat products like this. Please check your tins before cooking.”

A spokesperson for KTC Edibles said the product is contract packed on their behalf by a BRC accredited manufacturer in Italy.

The accreditation means ‘that they are independently audited by food industry experts covering, amongst many other elements, food safety and product quality’.

A spokesperson said: “We had made an offer of a voucher as a goodwill gesture without prejudice in recognition of the complainant’s inconvenience and we have requested the complaint sample so that we may investigate the matter.

“Regrettably to date, we have not had any indication that this will be released to us. This is standard industry practice and a detailed analysis of the foreign body is essential in order for us to determine the root cause and take any necessary corrective actions.”