Found a Bone in My Cereal....

I understand not wanting to be "sue-happy" but I would not trust Kroger to actually do anything about it, accept maybe pull the ones that are on the shelf at that store right now.

With out embarrassing attention brought to it, there is no reason for them to do anything.

It costs them money to do anything, so they wont.

If you get a lawsuit or even the news involved, they then MUST do something to protect their own image, which is all that matters to them in the end, not the people who might choke or get sick.

Just my opinion.

Bethany:

My guess? rodent not chicken.

I had that happen with a General Mills cereal - not a bone but plastic piece...took a chomp and cracked my tooth - I saved the piece, called the 800 number and they took care of EVERYTHING - no kidding...I mailed the piece to them (certified mail) and they verified it was from a piece of their equipment - they paid my dentist bill in full DIRECTLY, I didn't have to pay out of pocket and they sent me probably $100 in coupons....

It's only happened once. I wasn't sue happy and they were wonderful to deal with.

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I'm sure they asked you for the lot number right? that way they will let the grocers all know to pull that lot number from the shelves. How the heck does a chicken bone get in cereal? Good grief! I guess it could have been worse tho huh? Dang.

Call your local health department and contact the FDA. They should do a full recall on all boxes with that lot number.

I agree it could be a rodent bone, but it could also be from a bird - birds get into plants all the time and nest up in the rafters. You can see them all the time in the big warehouse club stores, big hardware stores, and so on.

I'm in the nutrition business, and I can tell you that it's appalling what is allowed in the food plants. A certain amount of rodent dropping and insect parts are actually allowed in our food! The FDA occasionally goes in to inspect, but they don't have enough people to do this. The only time any action is taken is when someone complains. Also, Kroger does not process their own cereal - they just buy it from the same company that does the "name brand" - the plant just puts the same cereal in a Kroger box. So that cereal is probably made by Kellogg's or Post or someone like that.

I would suggest you call the company directly, and also that you save the box and the bone. Report it to your state's consumer protection division (call the State Attorney General's office for specifics) and also to the FDA. I don't see why you can't call your local media either - call the consumer affairs reporter. The lot number from the box will indicate where & when the cereal was packaged so it will identify the plant. No reason a news station can't alert the public especially when the company has not responded to you.

And yes, you should take action. You don't have to sue them but you're right about safety - what if a child had choked on that bone?? And where are the rest of the bones from that animal? Someone else's kitchen? Make some noise about it - you'll be helping a lot of people.

Go on their website and call their 800 number. Speaking to someone is actually better than an email, I've worked in customer service for years and know this for a fact.

A few years ago I found foil pieces in a box of mac and cheese, not from Kroger. I'd been planning on serving it to my children so was understandably miffed. I called the 800 number and within an hour someone who specifically handled complaints called me back and asked if she could come out to take a report and pick up the box. She explained that they take these type of things very seriously and needed to know where it was manufactured, etc..

About 10 days passed after she came out and I received a call from her telling me they'd investigated the plant it came from and could not figure out how the foil got into the package. She also told me she was putting a letter to that effect in the mail to me and sending some coupons. OMGosh, I received oodles of coupons for free items, and when I went to the store and used them all at one time the woman behind me almost fainted when she saw my total go to zero!

Last year I had a problem with a bag of Up & Up diapers from Target, the tapes ripped off 3 of the diapers in the package when I went to fasten them. I called, they asked for the codes on the bag, where and when I purchased them, and sent me three $3 coupons that more than covered the price of the diapers.

And a friend of mine bought a 6-pack of Pepsi, and when they got home they found that one of the cans, though sealed, was completely empty. Pepsi sent them cases of soda when they complained.

Companies really want to hear when you have a problem with their products, so follow through with a call, tell them you emailed them but wanted to make sure they didn't overlook it, and be pleasant. Trust me, that will go a long way in them wanting to keep you happy!

id be pissed!!, im a vegetarian and i dont want bones in my cereal!

oh please please say what happened!! i am truly intreged to hear what the store/company says!!!

Make sure you provide the lot number of the box of cereal so they can trace it.

Good for you for not being sue happy like so many people are. There is no need for a lawyer, etc. Gees...

Companies want to know if there are issues with products and they DO respond to complaints such as this. I am ex corporate for Frito lay and we always responded to any complaint on a product and they still do.

Most definitely rodent bone. FDA actually 'allows' a certain amount of rodent droppings, etc. in our food because of the way it is processed. Ew!

I know this is mainly a group for mothers but its the only place I found a story similar to mine. Yesterday I was eating Kroger brand apple jacks and bit into something hard. It was small, white, and sharp. We called the 800 number and they are suppose ti send us out a mailing kit. I thought it looked like glass but upon reading this finding it could be a bone has made me ill. Did you happen to take a picture of it ?

I'm betting rodent bone too. Ugh. Gross.

I found one in my Frosted Flakes just today!

Ewwww!

One time my husband was eating a snack size bag of peanuts and there was a screw in it! He discovered it when he chomped on it. He called Planters to tell them, and all they did was send us a bunch of coupons for free peanuts. I think this kind of thing happens all the time. Its really gross though. I can understand that maybe a screw came off the bagging machine at the factory, but how the heck did a chicken bone get into cereal?

I think too many people are "sue happy," and this is definitely not anything to file a suit about. I do think that rather than email, you should call and tell them about the experience. We've had something similar years back. We just made a call, and they had no problem refunding our money and they even gave us several freebies that weren't necessary but were greatly appreciated. In our case it was a large piece of wood, and they asked for us to send them the package it came in along with the wood. I'm sure that was to make sure they took care of anything else packaged at that time (recalls, etc). Make sure you save that in case they ask. Hope that helps.

It makes me happy to see that you are approaching it realistically because my pet peeve is seeing people who feel like they never make mistakes and flip out over even the smallest thing and are dialing their lawyer, who is probably on speed dial. It's just not the way to go. I hope it was an accident, which is odd, but if it's not I hope that they figure out who the "prankster" was and fire him/her.

Updated

I think too many people are "sue happy," and this is definitely not anything to file a suit about. I do think that rather than email, you should call and tell them about the experience. We've had something similar years back. We just made a call, and they had no problem refunding our money and they even gave us several freebies that weren't necessary but were greatly appreciated. In our case it was a large piece of wood, and they asked for us to send them the package it came in along with the wood. I'm sure that was to make sure they took care of anything else packaged at that time (recalls, etc). Make sure you save that in case they ask. Hope that helps.

It makes me happy to see that you are approaching it realistically because my pet peeve is seeing people who feel like they never make mistakes and flip out over even the smallest thing and are dialing their lawyer, who is probably on speed dial. It's just not the way to go. I hope it was an accident, which is odd, but if it's not I hope that they figure out who the "prankster" was and fire him/her.

Take pictures as evidence. Pictures of the object next to the box, pictures of the box label and information, so that you have proof of everything. They're probably going to ask you to send them the "foreign object" so that they can test it as well as the lot and batch information but you want to make sure that you still retain some proof.

YUCK! But I'm interested to hear what they actually do about it! Good luck.