A Coles shopper has issued an urgent warning after she nearly bit into a strawberry that had a pin hidden inside.
The woman had bought the punnet from a store in Mount Sheridan in Cairns, in Far North Queensland this week.
But upon cutting up one of the strawberries she was horrified to see a long thin needle sticking out of the fruit.
A Coles shopper has issued an urgent warning after discovering a needle inside a strawberry she'd bought from a store in Cairns this week
The shopper said the supermarket had been notified and warned any other customers to 'please be careful'.
A Coles spokesperson said they would investigate the matter.
'Coles takes the safety of the food we sell seriously,' the spokesperson said.
'We have worked with our strawberry suppliers to implement additional control measures to ensure strawberries are inspected before they are sent to supermarkets.
'We will follow up with our supplier to investigate the matter.'
The incident marks the second time a needle was found in a strawberry in Cairns this month.
A six-year-old girl was rushed to hospital at the start of the month after she was stabbed in the lip by a needle hidden inside the fruit.
The little girl suffered a small cut to the bottom of her lip and the Coles supermarket in Earlville was notified.
Back in 2018, a contamination crisis plagued the strawberry industry when needles were found lodged in dozens of packaged fruit.
The first incident was reported in September 2018 and a further 230 cases were reported nationwide, impacting 68 strawberry brands.
A six-year-old girl was rushed to hospital at the start of the month after she was stabbed in the lip by a needle hidden inside a strawberry