Posted by collins, a member of the Vista Grande Elementary School community, on May 25, 2010 at 12:32 pm

I suspect that the moths found in the bag of almonds at Lucky's are grain moths. They are more commonly found in bags of flour, grains and birdseed. The "maggots" in question are the pupal form of the moths. I saw the story on KTVU news, and this is exactly what they looked like.

The manufacturer most likely packages mixes of foods that contain grains and/or seeds, and that is how the contamination began.

Posted by Tracy, a resident of the Danville neighborhood, on May 25, 2010 at 5:58 pm

This made the news? It must have been a slow night! As disgusting as it is, it is not uncommon for nuts to have this sort of infestation - especially when they are stored in bins (which it sounds like was not the case here).

But the news? Seriously?

Posted by cass, a resident of the Danville neighborhood, on May 25, 2010 at 7:12 pm

I am not surprised at all. That store has always had an odd smell to it and I hate to even shop there. There has been several times I purchased canned goods at the store only to find an expired date on the can. Some of the clerks are really nice but some of them just look like they hate to be there.

Posted by Responding, a resident of the Danville neighborhood, on May 26, 2010 at 12:30 am

The stores are RARELY to blame in these situations. Remember the Target incident in San Ramon a year or so back with the maggots in the baby food?

Contamination is most likely from the manufacturing or bottling plant. If there is contamination inside the sealed packaging, you can almost be sure that it did not come from the store, but from when the food was being prepped.

Posted by Alamo Resident, a resident of the Alamo neighborhood, on May 26, 2010 at 8:49 am

Look at the bright side - at least you know that the company does not use pesticides.

Posted by Duffy, a resident of the Danville neighborhood, on May 26, 2010 at 9:24 am

Does anyone besides me find the following behaviour atypical? Three trips back to the same store in San Ramon from Dublin!

"Brown went back to the store with her husband to return the bag and was told the stock would be moved.

"Later that evening, my husband and I returned to the store and noticed none of the bags had been pulled,"

"I went down the following morning and they were still there," Brown said.

Posted by Derek, a resident of the Danville neighborhood, on May 26, 2010 at 10:25 am

Mmmmm. Great on casseroles! A few little bugs - come on lady, buck up! Methinks Duffy is right.

You want to be grossed out? Years back I used to buy frozen pre-packaged New Zealand green mussels and broil them in the oven. About the fourth time I bought them, and after using the first half of the pack, I discovered what I thought was a baby mussel clinging in a frozen state to the outside of a bigger shell. Hmmm, this little mussel has legs. And antennae.

First time I saw a kiwi cockroach, but that is exactly what it was.

I mailed it in a padded envelope back to the importer, suggesting they try a little garlic, fresh pepper, and low heat. Never heard back. Guess they didn't care for my serving suggestions.

Posted by Hamilton, a resident of the Danville neighborhood, on May 26, 2010 at 11:48 am

Duffy,

What do you find odd about someone going from Dublin to San Ramon? If you stand on the south side of the parking lot at that Lucky's and look across the street, you are looking at Dublin.

Posted by Ron, a resident of the Danville neighborhood, on May 27, 2010 at 7:36 am

Why go back to the store twice to see if the product was removed? Maybe the store inspected the items on the shelf and determined it was an isolated case, I would think its their choice to sell or remove, not the customer. A few bugs will not hurt you, may gross you out but if you want to be sick, look at where the fish comes from and understand there are few regulations where that product is produced.

Posted by Gus, a resident of the Diablo neighborhood, on May 27, 2010 at 12:35 pm

I agree with Duffy. Sounds like the Mr. and Mrs. Brown have too much time on their hands. I appreciate them notifying the store, but to go back two additional times is a little ridiculous.

Posted by Gruff but Lovable Ben, a resident of the San Ramon neighborhood, on May 27, 2010 at 12:43 pm

I assume that bugs and/or maggots are not included in the list of ingredients or otherwise mentioned on the products' labeling. If that is indeed the case, the product must be removed from the shelf and a product recall is in order because, by definition, it is adulterated. Mr. and Mrs. Brown are justified in their actions, although a complaint to the Department of Health and Human Services will likely yield the desired results much more quickly.