(Bloomberg) — Pre-packaged meal service Daily Harvest is telling customers not to eat one of its products after reports of “gastrointestinal issues.”
While the company has been responding to reports as early as Wednesday on its Instagram account, Daily Harvest did not make a statement on the matter until Sunday. The recall statement was posted to the company’s website, where they vowed to launch “an investigation with internal and external experts throughout our supply chain and in accordance with regulatory procedures.”
“We took immediate steps to address what we heard from customers, reaching out to every person who received French Lentil + Leek Crumbles, instructing them to dispose of the product and not eat it,” the post says.
Meal and grocery delivery is increasingly competitive, with companies from Blue Apron to Hungry Root and Instacart to FreshDirect and UberEats piling in. Founded in 2015, Daily Harvest specializes in frozen food products, including ready-to-blend smoothies, and The New York-based startup was valued at $1.1 billion in November after an investment round led by Lone Pine Capital that included Lightspeed Venture Partners.
Consumers and influencers have flooded Redditt and Twitter, claiming the brand’s French Lentil + Leek Crumbles have sickened them and even sent them to the hospital.
In an email viewed by NBC News, the brand responded to customer complaints by offering a $10 credit for every bag purchased. “As included in our cooking instructions, lentils must be thoroughly cooked to an internal temperature of 165°F,” the email read.
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