A man from Spartanburg, S.C. spotted an unwelcome stowaway in a package of Kirkland's "Fresh Wild Pacific True Cod" at his local Costco store - a live and wriggling orange worm.
Binh Nguyen posted a video of his encounter with the worm and shared it via his Facebook page. He wrote: "Looks careful when buying 'fresh' fishes at local Costco or you will find this!!! I'm quitting sushi for now lol. This video was taken a few days ago at a Costco Store in Spartanburg SC btw."
Nguyen initially posted the video March 14 and as of late, it has already received close to 300,000 shares. His case was brought to Costco executives by WSPA 7 On Your Side. The network was able to touch base with Costco Vice President of Quality Assurance and Food Safety, Craig Wilson.
Wilson confirmed that the nematode, or parasitic roundworm, was indeed found in the Kirkland package of wild pacific cod earlier this month.
"Although it's quite frankly, disgusting, I wish I could tell you that it was very, very uncommon," he said. Wilson stressed that cod, like other ground fishes, are prone to nematodes.
Wilson also explained that they have employees assigned to specifically look for parasites to ensure that they will not be found in any of their products, a process they call "candling."
"Typically, these parasites don't represent a health problem at all, unless people are eating raw cod," Wilson said.
Wilson clarified that the package of cod seen in the video was not sold, adding that they are reviewing their inspection process to avoid the same problem in the future.
