Aldi customer 'traumatised' to find two starfish lurking in mussels

Karen Birmingham tucked into Aldi's 'The Fishmonger' Scottish Mussels with White Wine Sauce as a starter at home with her husband and daughter Katie Birmingham last month.

The 62-year-old had one of the molluscs from the £2.19 pack left to eat and used her fingers to pick up the fleshy morsel but, noticing it felt rough, dropped it onto her plate. Initially confused, retired exam board worker Karen wondered what it was only for her disgusted hubby to declare it was a starfish.

On closer examination of the discarded shell, the mum-of-two claims she then discovered a second smaller starfish curled up on the other side. Photos of Karen's dinner plate show the two stowaways, which are active predators and feast on mussels and clams, swimming in the white wine sauce.

Taking to social media, horrified Karen said she was 'traumatised' by the find on January 10 and declared it's put her off eating mussels ever again.

After complaining to Aldi about the two-inch long critters, Karen received an apology and a £12.19 voucher. Aldi apologised for the 'unexpected guests she found', which they claim are common starfish and not harmful, and provided a full refund.

Karen, from Bolton, Greater Manchester, said: "We love mussels and have eaten them for years. We had them as a starter and they were fine. I took the last one off my plate, this particular one was a larger mussel, opened it up and I thought 'that doesn't look right'.

"I opened it up and picked it out with my fingers and thought 'it doesn't feel right'. A mussel is quite smooth, but this felt rough. Then I put it on my plate and my husband realised it was a starfish, I'd never seen anything like that before.

"I looked on the other side [of the shell] and there was a second starfish. I was absolutely astounded, I thought 'oh my God there's another one'.

"We only had one piece of pizza after that, it [discovering the starfish] put us off. I don't think I'll eat mussels again, it's put me off. I have a bit of a delicate stomach."

Karen's daughter Katie Birmingham, a 31-year-old aesthetic wholesaler, said she was worried about what could have happened if her mum had eaten it. Aldi has said that common starfish are not harmful if eaten.

Karen, who bought the seafood from the Higher Bridge Street of Aldi in Bolton, Greater Manchester, contacted the budget retailer on social media and got a response on January 11.

Karen wrote: "I thought when I took it out of the shell 'that doesn't feel like a mussel' and then I saw the legs and the tentacles and then there were two one in each half of the shell. Traumatised!!"

A message sent on X by Aldi apologised for the inconvenience and said they'd send a £12.19 voucher over email.

Karen said: "It's not Aldi's fault [the starfish got in there]. I'm not sure how I feel about the voucher, it was a really odd amount. I don't know where they got it from."

An Aldi spokesperson said: "While very rare, this can occasionally occur with products that are found in natural environments. We have apologised to Ms Birmingham for the unexpected guests she found in her mussels and provided her with a full refund."