Supermarket giant Marks and Spencer has come under fire online after a shopper made a worrying observation about an in-store display. People have been quick to point out the placement of two items, which if mixed up could cause someone to become ill.
Botanist James Wong tweeted a photo taken in one M&S store which shows spring onions and daffodils mixed in with each other. In his tweet, he states that daffodils are “the single most common cause of plant-based poisoning.”
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The science writer and broadcaster said while he did not want to get staff at M&S in trouble, urgent training was needed as if a customer mistakenly picked up a bundle of daffodils instead of spring onions, which admittedly look extremely similar, and ingested them, it could be potentially toxic.
James tweeted: “Gosh, my mum sent me this… Daffodils are the single most common cause of plant-based poisoning as people mistake their bulbs (even cut flower buds) for crops in the onion family.
“@marksandspencer I don’t want to get any staff in trouble. But you need better training asap.”
M&S has apologised for the error, saying the issue would be rectified.
M&S Spokesperson: “Customer safety is our priority and our British daffodils are clearly labelled, with an on-pack warning that they are not safe to consume. This was an error on the part of one of our store teams and we have asked the store to rectify. We apologise for any confusion caused.”
Mr Wong added that garlic scapes also look very similar to daffodil bulbs and are “commonly eaten all over the world.”
He said if you ended up biting into a daffodil, it would feel “like swallowing a box of tiny needles” as they are filled with microscopic crystals.
One Twitter user named Susan responded to the tweet saying: “I mean why would you even risk putting them right next to something edible,” with Roger posting: "Saw this earlier and thought it was a little foolish."
Sarah, who says she used to work on daffodil farms in Cornwall, added: “That's not good. I used to work on daffodil farms down in Cornwall harvesting both the flowers and the bulbs. I have scars on my hands from sap seeping around the rubber gloves that we had to wear. I hate to think of what it would do to your insides.”
Sara Venn commented on the tweet saying: “That is terrifying”, while a user named Jeff said, “Filing this under scary thing I just learned…”
A lot of people commented on the tweet saying they never knew daffodils could be potentially toxic.
According to a certified specialist in poison, Serkalem Mekonnen, adults have mistaken daffodil bulbs for onions.
“All parts of the daffodil contain a toxic chemical, lycorine. The part of the plant that contains the highest concentration of lycorine is the bulb,” she said.
The bulb also contains chemicals called oxalates, which are microscopic and needle-like.
Eating any part of the plant may cause symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and diarrhoea, which can usually last about 3 hours.
“When swallowed, oxalates cause severe burning and irritation of the lips, tongue, and throat.
“Usually, the only treatment required is rinsing the mouth well and drinking water or milk. If vomiting and diarrhoea persist, watch for dehydration. If a person is having severe throat pain, difficulty swallowing, or drooling, medical evaluation and treatment is needed,” she added.
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