'Human waste' in cans forces shutdown at Coca-Cola plant in Northern Ireland BelfastTelegraph.co.uk Police have launched an investigation after what appears to be human waste was found in a shipment of drinks cans at a Co Antrim factory. https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/human-waste-in-cans-forces-shutdown-at-cocacola-plant-in-northern-ireland-35570541.html https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/article35570540.ece/f2264/AUTOCROP/h342/2017-03-28_new_29824959_I1.JPG 
 
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 Police have launched an investigation after what appears to be human waste was found in a shipment of drinks cans at a Co Antrim factory. 
 
 Multinational Coca-Cola said it was probing the matter with the PSNI. It added products currently on sale were not affected. 
 
 The night shift at Lisburn's Coca-Cola plant was disrupted last week when a container of cans thought to have arrived from Germany clogged up the machines - only for workers to discover a number were filled with what looked like human waste. 
 
 "It was absolutely horrible, and the machines had to be turned off for about 15 hours to be cleaned," a source said. "It was unusual because normally the cans come from somewhere else in the UK, but this time they apparently came from Germany. 
 
 "The rumour is that some poor immigrants could have made that long journey in the lorry and that in their desperation were forced to use the cans instead of a toilet. 
 
 "It's really shocking - and beyond the shock of finding something pretty disgusting in the cans is the thought there could have been poor people in that situation. And if they did make that journey, where are they now?" 
 
 The source explained the cans arrive at the factory without tops on, to be filled with the fizzy drink before they are sealed and sold across Northern Ireland. 
 
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 Alliance councillor Amanda Grehan said she was dumbfounded by the news. 
 
 "That's really shocking, and if the drinks cans were to get out into shops then it could be extremely dangerous for people," she said. 
 
 "But Coca-Cola are a big business in the area and I'm sure they'll do everything necessary to make sure the affected ones don't get out. 
 
 "That illegal immigrants could be involved in some way is worrying too, although we're not sure yet if that's the case. 
 
 "But rather than condemn anyone who might have found themselves in this situation, I think it's far more important that we help anyone who is that desperate and make sure they're safe." 
 
 Police visited the factory at the city's Knockmore industrial estate after the discovery. 
 
 The PSNI said: "Detectives are investigating an incident at commercial premises in the Lisburn area following reports that a consignment of containers delivered to the premises had been contaminated. 
 
 "The investigation is at an early stage and there are no further details available at this time." 
 
 The soft drinks giant said: "Coca-Cola take the safety and quality of our products extremely seriously. 
 
 "We are aware of an incident involving empty cans at our plant in Knockmore Hill, Lisburn. 
 
 "We are treating this matter extremely seriously and are conducting a thorough investigation in co-operation with the PSNI. 
 
 "The problem was identified immediately through our robust quality procedures and all of the product from the affected production was immediately impounded and will not be sold. This is an isolated incident and does not affect any products currently on sale." 
 
 The Food Standards Agency said: "The FSA in NI is aware of a physical contamination incident at Coca-Cola Hellenic in Lisburn. There is no evidence to suggest that any affected product has reached the market. 
 
 "The incident is subject to an investigation by the PSNI and the environmental health unit of Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council." 
 
 Belfast Telegraph 

 Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Coca Cola stressed this was an isolated incident that did not affect any products currently for sale 
 
 Police have begun an investigation after what appeared to be human waste was found in drinks cans delivered to a Coca Cola factory in Northern Ireland. 
 
 The night shift at the Lisburn factory was disrupted last week when machines became clogged; Coca Cola said it had impounded all affected cans. 
 
 The company stressed this was an isolated incident that did not affect any products currently for sale. 
 
 Police are investigating reports that a consignment may have been contaminated. 
 
 As reported in the Belfast Telegraph, the cans arrive at the plant without tops on and are then filled with the drink before being sealed and sold across Northern Ireland. 
 
 "Detectives are investigating an incident at commercial premises in the Lisburn area following reports that a consignment of containers delivered to the premises had been contaminated," said a spokesman for the Police Service of Northern Ireland. 
 
 'Beggars belief' 
 
 A spokesperson for Coca-Cola said the company was aware of an incident involving empty cans at the Knockmore Hill plant. 
 
 "We are treating this matter extremely seriously and are conducting a thorough investigation in cooperation with the PSNI," said the spokesperson. 
 
 Image copyright Albert Bridge Image caption The bottling plant is at Knockmore, Lisburn 
 
 "The problem was identified immediately through our robust quality procedures and all of the product from the affected batch was immediately impounded and will not be sold. 
 
 "This is an isolated incident and does not affect any products currently on sale." 
 
 The Food Standards Agency said: "The FSA in Northern Ireland is aware of a physical contamination incident at Coca-Cola Hellenic in Lisburn. There is no evidence to suggest that any affected product has reached the market. 
 
 "The incident is subject to an investigation by the PSNI and the environmental health unit of Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council." 
 
 Pat Catney, SDLP MLA for Lagan Valley, said the incident "beggars belief". 
 
 "I am not sure how contamination could have come about," he said. "They are sticklers for hygiene, cleanliness and about contamination. 
 
 "We shall have to wait for the police investigation. But it is a state-of-the art factory. I have been around it and this is one of the most professional set-ups I have ever seen." 

 Coca-Cola has called in police to investigate how human waste turned up in a consignment of its drink cans at one of the company’s factories in Northern Ireland. 
 
 The Police Service of Northern Ireland confirmed on Tuesday it had opened an inquiry into how faeces ended up in the cans at the Helllenic Bottling Company factory in Lisburn, Co Antrim. 
 
 Coca-Cola suspended night-time processing last week at the plant when machines became clogged. 
 
 The soft drinks giant said it impounded all the affected cans and that the contamination did not affect any products that were on sale. The cans arrive at the factory without tops, to be filled with the fizzy drink before they are sealed and sold across Northern Ireland. 
 
 A PSNI spokesman said: “Detectives are investigating an incident at commercial premises in the Lisburn area following reports that a consignment of containers delivered to the premises had been contaminated. The investigation is at an early stage and there are no further details available at this time.” 
 
 In a statement, the company told the Belfast Telegraph: “Coca-Cola takes the safety and quality of our products extremely seriously. 
 
 “We are aware of an incident involving empty cans at our plant in Knockmore Hill, Lisburn. We are treating this matter extremely seriously and are conducting a thorough investigation in co-operation with the PSNI. 
 
 
 
 “The problem was identified immediately through our robust quality procedures and all of the product from the affected production was immediately impounded and will not be sold. This is an isolated incident and does not affect any products currently on sale.” 
 
 The Food Standards Agency said none of the cans contaminated with faeces had reached the market in Northern Ireland. It added: “The incident is subject to an investigation by the PSNI and the environmental health unit of Lisburn and Castlereagh city council.”
– Police are investigating after suspected human waste was found inside cans at a Coca-Cola plant in Ireland, the Belfast Telegraph reports. Topless cans arrive at the factory to be filled by Coca-Cola products and sealed before they're sold around Northern Ireland. The cans in question—believed to have come from Germany—jammed the plant's machines during the night shift. Apparent human waste in the cans was determined to be the culprit. An unnamed source describes an "absolutely horrible" scene that resulted in the machines being turned off for 15 hours for cleaning. The Guardian specifies the type of human waste found in the cans was feces. One Irish politician tells the BBC the incident "beggars belief" because Coca-Cola "are sticklers for hygiene, cleanliness, and about contamination." The drink giant says all the tainted cans were caught and no products available to the public were affected. While the investigation—by both police and Coca-Cola—is ongoing, one rumor is that the human waste came from immigrants attempting to enter the UK in the back of the truck and using the cans as toilets out of desperation.