Aldi customer warns of 'unbearable' taste from Special Buy
A concerned Aldi customer has warned others after she purchased a children's dinner set that smelt and tasted like chemicals from the retailer.
Sharing her experience on Facebook, the mum said she purchased the Aldi Crofton brand children's dinner set at her local store in New South Wales.
She quickly discovered an "unbearable" chemical smell each time she used it, saying the plate made food taste like "nail polish remover".
"Did anyone else purchase one of these sets and are you having any issues with it?" she wrote alongside a picture of the set she purchased.
"I have noticed when I put my daughter's dinner on it, it actually gives off an awful smell and makes the food taste terrible, like nail polish remover. Seems to only be with hot food.
"I’ve had to throw several dinners out now because of how it made them smell and taste."
The Crofton three-piece children's dinner set was an Aldi Special Buy on July 28. It comes in three different designs and is made from bamboo fibre.
Other Aldi mums have noticed it too
The Aldi customer was so shocked she said she tested the plate to ensure it wasn't just "in her head", but soon other mums confirmed they'd experienced the same thing.
"You’re not alone! I too thought it was in my head! I soaked and washed it 199x and every time hot food touched it the nail polish taste would leech out again," another mum commented on the post.
"I had a mouthful of my son's rice well after it cooled and it was ridiculously strong! I don’t know if any kid would willingly eat if it was anything like my sons."
Others agreed saying they noticed the horrible tasting food from the plate too.
"I have the alphabet one! My son kept refusing to eat his dinner (a meal he usually loves!) and I thought maybe his tasted different! I tried it and instantly thought WTAF why do I taste nail polish remover? I knew it was the plate, but thought I was tripping out," added another.
"Yes this has happened with mine as well I've had to chuck out so many dinners. I've washed it millions of times to try help it but it never did so I chucked it," added a third.
The mum went on to say that she had tested her set by pouring boiling water over it and encouraged others to do the same.
"We poured boiling water on the plate just to see what happened, as others have confirmed the smell has also come from their plates," she said.
"The smell was unbearable almost immediately after pouring the boiling water on it."
Another issue with the Aldi plate set
Despite several Aldi shoppers noticing the nail polish taste and smell too, the mum was shocked to understand it hadn't happened with all the plate sets because the taste and smell were so strong.
"I was surprised so many people hadn’t had the issue, but I do think if they looked into it closer they might find it does have the smell when it gets something hot on it," she told Yahoo News Australia.
But there's another issue with the set. While others hadn't noticed a smell, they said their plates had broken or cracked after just one use.
"Our alphabet one cracked within a day! The bowl and cup were ruined. I thought it was just us... No smells though," one mum added.
"My son dropped and cracked his on the very first use. It broke so easily - was very disappointing!" another said.
Aldi encourages feedback
Speaking to Yahoo News Australia the shopper added that she has since stopped using the dinner set and had made a product complaint to Aldi Australia.
"I lodged a feedback form this morning on the Aldi website and requested a response but I imagine it will take some time to get back to me. I have the set in case they want it, but won’t be using it again," she said.
Aldi did not respond to direct questions from Yahoo News Australia about the issues with their plate sets.
Yahoo News Australia understands that Aldi Australia is encouraging anyone who has a complaint or issue with one of their products to complete a feedback form online.
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