Sewing needles lodged in potatoes at Prince Edward Island french fry plant

Police in Prince Edward Island say the metal objects found in six potatoes in Atlantic Canada in the last week were sewing needles and they have expanded their investigation to include a french fry production facility in the province.

RCMP Sgt. Leanne Butler said Wednesday that in addition to the tampered potatoes, sewing needles were detected in french fries on a production run at the Cavendish Farms plant in New Annan, Prince Edward Island

Butler said the tampered potatoes originated from Linkletter Farms, a company based in Summerside, P.E.I., that sells potatoes to the public and supplies Cavendish Farms.

“It appears the metal sewing needles were intentionally placed in the potatoes prior to the potatoes being sent to the production facility,” Butler said.
 The needles found at the french fry facility were detected by safety protocols and investigators believe that all of the affected fries were caught before they left the plant, the RCMP said.

The six potatoes that contained sewing needles were found by consumers in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador.

There are no reports of any injuries.