The man has taken the shrimp tails to a lab to get it tested now amid the row. A US man’s morning breakfast ended on a disgusting note, when he discovered shrimp tails in his pack of cereals! And to make him feel even worse, it found the crustaceans’ remains only after he had already had a bowl of his cereals. As he took to Twitter to elaborate his saga, the company’s response got netizens involved, who are now busy poking fun at the brand using hilarious memes and jokes.
It was a usual morning ritual for Jensen Karp from Los Angeles, having some cereals for breakfast. But he suddenly had a disturbing discovery — shrimp tails coated with sugar inside a box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Unhappy with the discovery of the crunchy addition, he tagged the brand wondering what went wrong.
He also tagged the brands parent company, General Mills, thinking they might be able to get him some answer.
Ummmm @CTCSquares – why are there shrimp tails in my cereal? (This is not a bit) pic.twitter.com/tTjiAdrnVp
— Jensen Karp (@JensenKarp) March 22, 2021
Alright, I’m looping in @GeneralMills because I’m genuinely nervous I will never eat (or sleep) again without answers. https://t.co/b3OtYyqLjG
— Jensen Karp (@JensenKarp) March 22, 2021
He continued to look through the box and found some other disturbing contents — from some thread to dental floss, and his misery went to another level.
Also, many of the squares have black marks, and some are dyed red? And yes, I ate a bowl before noticing all this. pic.twitter.com/Y9WWmsTznP
— Jensen Karp (@JensenKarp) March 22, 2021
UPDATE: my wife has a stronger stomach than me and checked the OTHER bag in the family pack. This one seems taped up (?) and also appears to include…(I don’t even want to say it)…dental floss. pic.twitter.com/yKPkpx7PWq
— Jensen Karp (@JensenKarp) March 23, 2021
But things took a weird turn, when company claimed there is no way shrimp tails can be in the bag and upon inspection looks like “accumulation of the cinnamon sugar”.
After further investigation with our team that closely examined the image, it appears to be an accumulation of the cinnamon sugar that sometimes can occur when ingredients aren’t thoroughly blended. We assure you that there’s no possibility of cross contamination with shrimp.
— Cinnamon Toast Crunch (@CTCSquares) March 22, 2021
Talking to the New York Times (NYT) about the incident, he said that he had already eaten a bowl of his favourite cereal. As he began filling a second bowl, “something plopped out of the box,” he said in an interview. “I picked it up, and I was like, ‘This is clearly a shrimp tail.’”
“I get really grossed out, and I’m medicated for O.C.D., so this is a total nightmare for me,” the 41-year-old artist told NYT. “I’m not considering legal action. Obviously, if I ate rat poop, we’re gonna have to readdress that,” he added.
I plan on continuing full transparency for those concerned about their products. This is the first I’ve heard from them since yesterday (when they said they were sending an envelope) and my new response. pic.twitter.com/EYugRvLbtC
— Jensen Karp (@JensenKarp) March 23, 2021
The man told the daily that privately the brand was very nice and offered a replacement that he denied. He even shared screenshot of his conversation with the brand, who had asked him to send in the shrimp tails for an investigation.
However, claiming that their response made him believe that there would be no fair investigation, so he personally took it to a lab to confirm if its tails of prawns or accumulated sugar as claimed by the company initially. As a Twitter user who works at the Natural History Museum offered to run a DNA test on the contents found in the bag, Karp informed he was on his way to get it tested.
Hey I study crustaceans at the Natural History Museum in LA, those do look a bit like a shrimp’s telson & uropods—tail. I would totally love to look at your “specimen” under a microscope, we might even be able to extract DNA to confirm its species or if it’s indeed cinnamon sugar
— Adam Wall, Carcinologist (@AdamWall626) March 23, 2021
I have been sent to…pest control.
— Jensen Karp (@JensenKarp) March 23, 2021
“While we are still investigating this matter, we can say with confidence that this did not occur at our facility,” General Mills told TMZ about the row. “We are waiting for the consumer to send us the package to investigate further. Any consumers who notice their cereal box or bag has been tampered with, such as the clear tape that was found in this case, should contact us,” they added in a statement.
As the shrimp tail controversy garnered a lot of attention online, Karp clarified why he decided to take matters into his own hands and get to the bottom of the matter, arguing that many people who are allergic to prawns might have suffered badly after consuming the same mixture.
My point is – their initial reaction to shellfish being in the bag was to tell me it was sugar. Not to investigate the issue or look into it. It’s a deadly allergy to many (and non-Kosher) and that didn’t seem to matter beyond offering me a new box.
— Jensen Karp (@JensenKarp) March 23, 2021
I originally approached them thinking it would help out! Then, they said I’m mistaking sugar for a crustacean. Anyway, I’m testing the DNA of a shrimp tail now. So, I hope everyone is happy.
— Jensen Karp (@JensenKarp) March 23, 2021
As Karp claimed “he’s never eating CTC again” on TMZ Live, others too came up with hilarious reactions to the row. While some quickly started a photoshop challenge to create new cover designs for the cereal brand using shrimps, others posted recipes involving the seafood to mock the company.
Check out some of the funniest reaction here:
A quirky animated film for kids about the shrimp who eventually go on to get into the bag of Cinnamon Toast Crunch
— FINNEAS (@finneas) March 24, 2021
Cinnamon Toast Crunch is awaiting the consumer to return the box so their experts can analyze it in their CSI lab, which of course stands for Cereal Shrimp Investigation. #LSSC pic.twitter.com/LE5sLOulj8
— A Late Show (@colbertlateshow) March 24, 2021
“… cinnamon shrimp, toast shrimp, cinnamon toast crunch shrimp, boiled shrimp…” pic.twitter.com/Ej8PZ66drw
— The Laugh Button (@thelaughbutton) March 23, 2021
Sorry, but I had to make this for you, @JensenKarp. pic.twitter.com/GoDmNSp0uY
— Miles McAlpin (@JMilesM) March 23, 2021
— Bobby Hundreds (@bobbyhundreds) March 23, 2021
I regret to inform you that I have made Cinnamon Toast Crunch shrimp with charred pineapple habanero reduction. Sorry. I had to though, I really did. pic.twitter.com/JzYe7VMiBB
— Josh Scherer (@MythicalChef) March 23, 2021
Cinnamon Toast Crunch tempura shrimp. Custom spice blend, jalapeños, served with a coconut lime dipping sauce.
Part of a balanced breakfast. pic.twitter.com/YuzS35r6z6
— Chef Andy Lunique (@AndyLunique) March 24, 2021
New Cinnamon Toast Crunch Oreo just dropped pic.twitter.com/0anluYL4JM
— King Julien’s Waifu (@Gardenboy15) March 23, 2021
“They’ve been acting fishy for years at Cinnamon Toast Crunch headquarters, hopefully now our voices are heard.” pic.twitter.com/oEbjyzeOgV
— Bench Day Dre (@BenchDayDre) March 23, 2021
Cinnamon Toast Cinnamon Toast
Crunch Employee Crunch Rat
realizing where his realizing where
shrimp cocktail all his damn
lunch done went treasures done
went! pic.twitter.com/MfuAdSmAO4— Luke Flowers (@lafcreative) March 23, 2021
The Cinnamon Toast Crunch factory: pic.twitter.com/YiFFCVkTov
— doivis (@mccaffreus) March 23, 2021
Ursula enjoying some Cinnamon Toast Crunch pic.twitter.com/pLWNMJscCs
— Zach Zimmerman (@zzdoublezz) March 23, 2021
Krispy Kreme is giving out free donuts to anybody who’s gotten vaccinated.
Not to be outdone, Cinnamon Toast Crunch is giving out free shrimp tails.
— Alex Pawlowski (@AlexSourGraps) March 23, 2021
cinnamon toast crunch? more like cinnamon toast imposter syndrome pic.twitter.com/m17pIoBZHG
— Acamemia (@mightdropout) March 23, 2021
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