CHOCOLATE bars sold in the UK are making people ill, the Food Standards Agency has warned.
At least 10 people are believed to have been affected by Cali-Cold slabs, which are on sale at a popular Christmas market.
One person has been arrested in connection with the incident.
The "do not eat" warning applies to the 70 per cent dark chocolate variety, which the packaging says is from Venice, California, and is organic and fair trade.
It comes in a gold foil wrapper, with a peach and yellow card outer layer.
The product was available at Mansfield Market in Nottinghamshire, before it was pulled from stalls.
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Tina Potter, head of incidents at the FSA, said: "We are working with local authorities, the UK Health Security Agency and Nottinghamshire Police to investigate an incident following reports of illness after eating Cali-Gold chocolate.
"If you have purchased Cali-Gold chocolate from Mansfield Market in Nottinghamshire, you should not consume the product and dispose of it at home.
"If you have already eaten it and developed symptoms, then you should urgently seek medical attention."
Some online reports suggest the chocolate was "laced with drugs", but cops said there is "no evidence to support this at this stage".
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Detective Inspector Luke Todd added: "An investigation is currently ongoing to establish the circumstances behind people feeling unwell after consuming this chocolate.
"Please rest assured that we take all incidents of public safety extremely seriously and will always investigate any reports we receive of this nature."
One dad told NottinghamshireLive that he, his daughter, his two nephews, his niece and two of her friends had all eaten the chocolate.
He said it "instantly" made several of them feel ill and "like they were on drugs".
The parent later added that his nephew had been taken to hospital, and that he had had other messages about people being unwell after consuming the sweet treat.
Two weeks ago, a woman, believed to be from Mansfield, claimed that she and her husband had both fallen seriously ill and been admitted to A&E after eating organic chocolate from a gold packet.
In a YouTube video, she said her partner was hallucinating and acting drunk, and she felt delirious and was vomiting and fainting.
It is not known if they ate Cali-Gold chocolate.
Anyone with information that could help the police investigation should call 101, quoting incident 180 of November 26, 2023, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
The FSA has issued several other health warnings over the last two weeks.
Frozen peas sold at Tesco have been recalled over fears they are contaminated with an "unknown type of berry" which could make them "unsafe to eat".
Lidl has urgently recalled bars of white chocolate as they could contain pieces of plastic.
Boxes of Free From Gluten Choco Crackles were pulled from shelves in Morrisons as they were found to contain hazelnuts, milk and gluten-free oats, which weren't correctly listed on the label.
And Lidl recalled two duck products because of the presence of salmonella.
Signs of food poisoning
The FSA didn't specify what symptoms you might experience from eating Cali-Gold bars.
But if you have food poisoning, you may experience some of these following signs, according to the NHS:
- Feeling sick
- Diarrhoea
- Being sick
- Stomach cramps
- A high temperature of 38C or above
- Feeling generally unwell – such as feeling tired or having aches and chills
The symptoms can come on a few hours or days after eating food contaminated by germs.
You can usually treat yourself or your child at home, and you should feel better within a week.
But the NHS advises you to stay home from work and not to send your child to school until you or they have not been sick or had diarrhoea for at least two days.
Generally, food poisoning occurs if the food you eat is:
- Not cooked or reheated thoroughly
- Not stored correctly – for example, if it's not been frozen or chilled after opening
- Left out for too long
- Handled by someone who's ill or has not washed their hands
- Handled by someone who's ill or has not washed their hands
- Past its 'use by' or 'best before' date
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