Wire forces cereal recall

Thousands of packets of breakfast cereal were recalled recently after traces of wire were found in them.

Bosses at Kellogg Australia were desperate for packets of Coco Pops and Rice Bubbles to be returned as a precautionary measure. Although the pieces of wire are small they are potentially fatal to small children. The recall notice applied to both individual packs bought in supermarkets and food service catering packs. Kellogg company spokesman John Collignon said the problem was caused by a manufacturing glitch in the company's Botany plant.

He explained: "During investigation of a serious consumer complaint, it was found that an isolated incident occurred during production of the cereal which resulted in small pieces of thin wire mixing with the product. We've had several complaints, and although we believe there's only a few [affected packets] out there, we don't exactly know where they are, so we're recalling all of the products in production.

"Given that it's thin wire that's mixed with the product, the safety of our customers is our overriding concern." Collignon urged customers not to panic, but to ring the company's hotline if they had concerns about their products. A statement released by Kellogg said the problem leading to the recall would be rectified.