Thursday, September 22, 2005

What would you do?

Since our dishwasher was broken for a few days until we had it replaced yesterday, my husband bought some paper plates for us to use to cut down the amount of handwashing. To be specific, the Classic White Chinet (R) Premium Strength Paper All Occasion Plates, 8 3/4 in., "Made from Recycled Material" by Huhtamaki in Albertville, Alabama, and pictured below.

There was SOMETHING - I know not what - inside the package shrink-wrap:


It scares me.


So what exactly do you think it was that they were recycling?

It probably would cost as much in gas to return it to the store as the item cost. Other ideas?



Update: Found online: Pursuant to 40 CFR Part 403.8(f)(2)(vii), the Alabama Department of Environmental Management is required to Public Notice any Industrial User that is in Significant Non-Compliance with applicable Pretreatment Standards at any time during the previous twelve months. This notice is intended to inform the public that Huhtamaki Company (formerly Chinet Company), P.O. Box 1548, Albertville, Alabama 35950, SID Permit Number IU 08-48-00200, located at 608 Mathis Mill Road, Albertville, Alabama, was in significant non-compliance during the period from January 2003 through March 2004 by discharging wastewater to the City of Albertville East WWTP that did not comply with permit limitations for BOD. Chinet Company is currently back in compliance.


Followup! I couldn't get through to their US website yesterday, but apparently one of my readers was more persistent than I. I received this email today, for which I give the company a great deal of credit for excellent pro-active customer service:

Sent: Friday, September 23, 2005 11:42 AM
Subject: Chinet Plates

Ms. Toby -
I received a photo of the Chinet Plates you purchased with "a little something extra" in the package. Please accept my apologies. From your photos, the foreign matter looks like charred fiber. This is caused by a build up on one of the dies on the vacuum shaft which was in need of cleaning. This package should not have left our facility. I will be happy to send you an envelope, prepaid, to return the package to me and I will also enclose coupons for free product.
Again, I apologize and hope you will continue to purchase Chinet products.
Jackie Camper
Customer Service
Huhtamaki Pkg
256-894-1113 Ph
256-878-9213 Fx

14 comments:

Dr. Iron TriFeist :) said...

Wow, extra protein! Don't think it will mix well with your next meal, though. Do you have lizards up there? Lizards love that kind of stuff.

:) said...

One word.

GROSS

Anonymous said...

I would send a photo of this to the company or to the supermarket and maybe they'll give you a coupon or something...
In any case... this is just gross... is that a cockroach? behh

Jeremy said...

Ok, my in laws live in albertville, AL. With all respect to them and my wife who spent 3 years of her younger life living there. You're not going to find rocket scientists in the area. It's like mayberry, but with more in breeding.

Their major employers are private chicken farms and I believe the Tyson chicken "plant" is located there. Sorta looks like a cockroach caught in the wrapper to me.

I'd send a letter to the company at least. As far as what to do with the plates....uh recycle them again???

Flo said...

It looks like a roach (and living in Hawaii I have extensive roach experience unfortunately ;). I would absolutely contact the company and complain. They clearly have something wrong with their GMP's and they need to know, now...

Mark said...

That's invasion of the body snatchers type stuff! Whatever you do, don't touch it or go to sleep around it!

Holly said...

AHHHHH.... I would throw that away instantly and probably never buy Chinnette again .... Of course I am easily influenced by the appearance of any "bug" .. dead or alive!

Mark said...

I did not think it possible but that update you just posted made that even grosser.

MB said...

NASTY

If you send them a letter, they will probably send you a coupon for more plates. As if you want more of that stuff.

Nancy Toby said...

Maybe I'll just save them for some special occasion. In my formerly-gainfully-employed days I could have used them for special office treats for my especially-disliked colleagues... ;-)

Ellie Hamilton said...

Eeeewwwww....

We use paper plates a lot b/c we're lazy. Maybe I'll start using our own real ones, and washing dishes again...

UltraMamaC said...

shudder.

I read this last night, but my Mozilla browser doesn't load the photos so I just now got full effect. Eeek.

Downhillnut said...

Remind me to never get on your bad side! If that package came into my house it would go straight into a garbage bag, no looking back. Ick. It would be a waste of my energy to even report it - I'd just let it go. Move right along, nothing to see here, folks...

Isn't it time the girls learned to wash dishes? LOL!

Dawn - Pink Chick Tris said...

Nice email. My mom was always one to complain to companies when products were ummm "gross" and she often got similar letters along with lots of freebies.

*being careful now to stay on Nancy's good side*