Tesco and Aldi have both issued urgent warnings to anyone who has bought fruit and vegetables from their shelves.
The supermarket giants are urging customers to wash any fruit or veg before eating it, amid fears it could have been contaminated by the Saharan desert dust cloud that swept across the Mediterranean earlier this month. In the middle of March, Spanish authorities issued "extremely poor air quality ratings" for a large band of the country.
Now Tesco has said the dust has affected some of its Spanish crops. It has posted a notice on its website urging people to wash produce before eating, according to the Manchester Evening News.
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It said: "Due to the recent winds from the Sahara Desert, a small amount of dust has settled on our Spanish crops. Please ensure you wash your fruit and veg products before enjoying. Thank you for supporting our growers and preventing food waste by continuing to buy these products."
Signs have also been spotted in Aldi stores, stating: "Please give your veg an extra rinse. Due to recent winds from the Sahara Desert, a small amount of dust may have settled in some of our packs. Thank you for supporting our growers and helping to reduce food waste by continuing to buy these products."
The dust cloud moved across Europe in mid March. People across the UK reported glowing orange skies.
The "stunning" colours were spotted among the clouds across Merseyside on Wednesday, March 16. The beautiful colours were being caused by a mixture of sand and dust from the Sahara desert being blow across Europe.
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