Poor little guy! Clearly, he wasn't exaggerating in his description.
Even worse, when Cullum cut open two more of the packets, she found the same thing: mold, mold, and more mold. So much mold!! Really, you have to see it to believe it — but be warned, the video Cullum posted on Facebook to warn other parents will probably put you off of applesauce for the rest of your life:
Embedded content: https://www.facebook.com/alecia.bailey.10/videos/10210325722272442/
Horrifying! No wonder this video has already gotten over 33 million views — a response which has taken Cullum completely by surprise.
"I posted it so my family could see," she told GoodHousekeeping.com. "We all buy pouches or Capri Suns or what have you. I honestly never expected it to go viral like it did."
More from CafeMom: Moms Share Warning After Disgusting 'Sophie the Giraffe' Discovery
That's the thing: We ALL buy pouches (my 2-year-old sucked one down in about 30 seconds just this morning), which is why I would have been surprised if this didn't go viral. Because these pouches are usually filled with fruit (and sometimes even a few sneaky vegetables), many of us think of these pouches as a healthy choice — never dreaming that they might end up making our kids sick.
In a statement, Mott's said that it's investigating the issue, but have yet to find any problems:
We've analyzed samples held from the same production run and found no issues. We have also received no similar, related calls or complaints from other people that could be connected to the issue in this consumer's social media posts. Nevertheless, we are continuing our investigation and working to obtain the affected product from the consumer so we can inspect the packaging and determine a root cause.
It's worth noting that this isn't the first time this kind of thing has happened. Luckily, mold contamination is typically more gross than dangerous. When GoGo Squeez recalled its applesauce packets for the same reason last year, the company's CEO assured consumers that while admittedly "unpleasant," the contents of the affected pouches were safe to eat. (Fungus was also found in Capri Sun juice pouches.)
Still, while it's at least a tiny bit comforting to know that our kids probably won't get sick if they happen upon a bad pouch, the fact that this is even a possibility definitely makes pouches a lot less attractive. It's not even like the pouches Cullum gave her son were anywhere near expired — the date on the label was August 22, 2017.
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I guess it all boils down to this: If you can't actually see the food you're eating, you're taking a risk. Until clear pouches become a thing, maybe the only way to be sure food isn't moldy is to taste-test what's inside before we give it to our kids — or stop buying pouches at all. Personally, I don't know if I'm ready to go back to the dark ages of bowls and spoons (at least not all the time). But I'm already in the habit of sneaking a taste of whatever I'm about to feed my youngest child, because of course, pouches aren't the only place you find spoiled food.
I've found mold or other signs of nastiness on everything from yogurt to fresh fruit salad to cheese to … I can't even remember what else — and all of those items were straight off the grocery store shelves. Whaddya gonna do? Food is perishable. Stuff goes bad. So it's generally a good rule of thumb to taste a little bit before you eat a whole lot — and when kids are little, we should probably get that step out of the way for them, at least until they're old enough to tell us their food tastes like poop!
