Haribo issue urgent fizzy sweets recall after 'traces of cannabis' found
The problem emerged after multiple members of one family, including two young children, became unwell after eating Happy Cola F!zz sweets.
The family and a number of other people who were also affected after eating the sweets reported the issue to the police in the Netherlands. A file image of a packet of Happy Cola F!ZZ. Pic: Haribo
An investigation has been launched into the incident.
A spokesperson from the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) confirmed its involvement and said 'Samples were taken and cannabis was found in them'
A spokesperson said they 'immediately contacted Haribo and the company issued a safety warning' A stock image of fizzy cola bottle sweets. Pic: Getty Images
The authority added: 'How the cannabis ended up in the sweets is still unknown. The police are investigating this further.'
Haribo said certain products in circulation could cause health problems such as dizziness. A company spokesperson said: 'The incident is contained to the Netherlands, to a specific product and batch.
In a statement, HARIBO said it is working closely with the authorities to support their investigation and establish the facts around the contamination.'
Haribo has asked customers not to return affected sweets to stores but instead send them directly back to the company for a refund.
HARIBO products in the UK, Ireland and other markets are not affected.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
6 days ago
- Irish Examiner
Bernard O'Shea: Five things I've learned about counting calories
1. MyFitnessPal is not my pal So, like every man who's ever muttered the words 'I think I'm in a cutting phase' while hiding in the car eating a breakfast roll, I downloaded a calorie-tracking app. At first, it was thrilling. Logging things. Scanning barcodes. Feeling smug. Until I realised that MyFitnessPal had the passive-aggressive tone of a schoolteacher with a clipboard: 'That snack was 847 calories. Would you like to log your shame?' Scientifically speaking, calorie tracking works. According to a study published in the , people who kept a food diary lost twice as much weight as those who didn't. But I'll also tell you this: people who didn't keep a food diary were probably just enjoying themselves. If you're thinking of counting calories, here's my tip: pre-log your day. Don't wait until you've eaten six biscuits to 'guess' how many calories you clocked up. Plan your meals like a tight wedding seating chart. Keep the butter away from the bread roll. Keep the cheesecake well away from your mouth. In the end, calorie tracking taught me something important: food is often an emotional issue. I wasn't logging nutrients — I was logging every mistake I'd made since 1997. But once I got past the guilt, it actually gave me a bit of power back. Because knowledge is power. And apparently, so is protein. 2. Calories are not feelings — but they're close There was a moment, about two weeks into tracking my food, where I found myself shouting at a rice cake. A rice cake. It was 35 calories, but emotionally, it cost me my will to live. You see, I had become what I swore I'd never be — someone who Googles 'Is Haribo a carb?' in a petrol station car park. Calories had taken over my brain. Suddenly, everything had a number. Tea with milk? 20 calories. Walking to the shop for more milk? 40 calories burned. Getting irrationally angry that I'd wasted 20 calories on tea? 10 calories in rage alone. I don't do calorie guilt very well. I do Catholic guilt. And I have enough of that to power a small hydroelectric dam. Science says that when you restrict food, your body wants it more. It's called the 'what-the-hell effect' — as in, you eat one biscuit, then go 'what the hell' and eat seven more. Here's my practical tip: Use the 80/20 rule. Eat well 80% of the time. Then let the 20% be a celebration, not a sin. Life's too short to turn down cake from someone who loves you. 3. I've become my own food auditor I've turned into someone who does maths before breakfast. Who knows the difference between olive oil (119 calories per tablespoon) and spray oil (20 calories per sad squirt). I'm not eating food anymore — I'm playing a nutritional version of Wordle. Nutritionists say food logging helps you learn what you're actually eating — not what you think you're eating. But I now know more about sodium content than I do about my own children. Counting calories made me realise I'm not bad at food — I'm just bad at stopping. 4. Restaurant menus are lying to you — but you want them to Menus with calorie counts are a relatively new concept in Ireland, but in the United States, they've been in place for years. A Starbucks muffin there is 620 calories. That's the same as a chicken stir-fry. And I've never cried into a stir-fry. Research shows that people tend to underestimate the number of calories in restaurant meals — by as much as 50%. So, if the menu says 500, assume it's 750. If it says 'drizzled,' that means 'bathed.' If it says 'light option,' that means you'll be hungry again by the car park. My advice: Choose joy, not sabotage. Don't order the 'healthy option' if you're just going to go home and eat your child's Easter egg. Get something you'll enjoy — just maybe skip the starter and don't inhale the bread basket like a Dyson on heat. 5. The goal is not thinness — it's not crying in Dunnes At one point in my calorie-tracking journey, I caught myself weeping beside the special offer yoghurts in Dunnes. It wasn't the flavours. It was the realisation that I was doing all this — the tracking, the measuring, the boiled eggs — for one thing: to feel good in my own skin. And maybe fit back into those jeans with the button that now looks like an explosive hazard. Now we have influencers, smartwatches, and people online with abs so sharp they could cut the dishes. And in fairness, some of them are helpful. But most of them live on açai bowls and filtered light. The science suggests that focusing solely on weight loss can lead to burnout. Focusing on health — including strength, sleep, and energy — yields better long-term results. That's what I'm aiming for now. Not a number. Just being able to put on socks without making noises that sound like I'm re-enacting Braveheart. Ultimately, calories are just numbers. They don't define your worth. You are not a spreadsheet. You are a full-fat, richly marbled, occasionally crumbling, gloriously messy human being. Just try not to eat a full Viennetta in one sitting. Counting calories didn't make me a better person. But it did make me more aware. I still have days where I eat like I've just come back from an Arctic exploration, but at least now I know how many sins are in the biscuits. And to whoever invented the phrase 'empty calories' — have you tasted them? They are delicious.
The Irish Sun
08-07-2025
- The Irish Sun
I stopped taking Mounjaro for 2 weeks & here's what really happens – yes, I've gained weight and I was ‘uncontrollable'
AFTER ditching Mounjaro for two weeks to go on holiday, a mother has shared what really happens when you stop taking fat jabs. Carmel Elizabeth Smith, a mother from the UK, weighed 16 stone before she started using the injections in a bid to slim down. Advertisement 3 A mother has revealed what really happens when you stop taking Mounjaro Credit: TikTok/mounjarojourneyandme2 3 Carmel Elizabeth Smith got candid on being 'uncontrollable' and shared exactly how much weight she put back on after ditching the injections for just two weeks Credit: TikTok/mounjarojourneyandme2 3 Mounjaro is used to treat type 2 diabetes Credit: Getty Now, the pink-haired beauty, who was previously suffering from pre-diabetes and But Carmel was eager to set the record straight on what she has recently experienced after she stopped injecting. Posting on social media, the savvy mum explained: 'So I went on holiday and didn't take 'For all the people thinking 'does the appetite come back?' Absolutely, absolutely.' Advertisement Read more on fat jabs Mounjaro, which is known as the King Kong of jabs, is now being prescribed on the NHS in the first anti-obesity rollout of its kind. It is said to suppress the appetite, making people feel fuller for longer. Such injections are licensed for patients with One jab is administered each week but the duration is dependent on a person's weight. Advertisement Most read in Fabulous But the content creator explained that she became 'uncontrollable' when it came to eating after stopping the injections, as she added: 'For the first five days on holiday, I was fine, I was just eating my normal little appetite - got to about day six and I started having some dinners, then it started to be little snacks in between.' After two weeks, Carmel had put on 8lbs, as she explained: 'I got home and I don't know what happened, but I was uncontrollable - crisps, Haribo's, sweets, cake.' Sun Health Explainer: Fat jabs Now, Carmel is back on Mounjaro and luckily, is beginning to see her weight decrease again. 'Back on it and starting to lose again - but yeah, when you stop taking Advertisement Social media users react Carmel's TikTok clip, which was posted under the username @ Not only this, but it had also amassed 1,158 likes and 315 comments. Everything you need to know about fat jabs Weight loss jabs are all the rage as studies and patient stories reveal they help people shed flab at almost unbelievable rates, as well as appearing to reduce the risk of serious diseases. Wegovy – a modified version of type 2 diabetes drug Ozempic – and Mounjaro are the leading weight loss injections used in the UK. Wegovy, real name semaglutide, has been used on the NHS for years while Mounjaro (tirzepatide) is a newer and more powerful addition to the market. Mounjaro accounts for most private prescriptions for weight loss and is set to join Wegovy as an NHS staple this year. How do they work? The jabs work by suppressing your appetite, making you eat less so your body burns fat for energy instead and you lose weight. They do this my mimicking a hormone called GLP-1, which signals to the brain when the stomach is full, so the drugs are officially called GLP-1 receptor agonists. They slow down digestion and increase insulin production, lowering blood sugar, which is why they were first developed to treat type 2 diabetes in which patients' sugar levels are too high. Can I get them? NHS prescriptions of weight loss drugs, mainly Wegovy and an older version called Saxenda (chemical name liraglutide), are controlled through specialist weight loss clinics. Typically a patient will have to have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher, classifying them as medically obese, and also have a weight-related health condition such as high blood pressure. GPs generally do not prescribe the drugs for weight loss. Private prescribers offer the jabs, most commonly Mounjaro, to anyone who is obese (BMI of 30+) or overweight (BMI 25-30) with a weight-related health risk. Private pharmacies have been rapped for handing them out too easily and video calls or face-to-face appointments are now mandatory to check a patient is being truthful about their size and health. Are there any risks? Yes – side effects are common but most are relatively mild. Around half of people taking the drug experience gut issues, including sickness, bloating, acid reflux, constipation and diarrhoea. Dr Sarah Jarvis, GP and clinical consultant at said: 'One of the more uncommon side effects is severe acute pancreatitis, which is extremely painful and happens to one in 500 people.' Other uncommon side effects include altered taste, kidney problems, allergic reactions, gallbladder problems and hypoglycemia. Evidence has so far been inconclusive about whether the injections are damaging to patients' mental health. Figures obtained by The Sun show that, up to January 2025, 85 patient deaths in the UK were suspected to be linked to the medicines. Social media users were stunned by Carmel's claims and many eagerly flocked to the comments to share their thoughts. Advertisement One person said: 'Thank you for this. I'm going away in a few weeks for two weeks and wasn't sure whether to stop or not but now I'm going to stay on it. For me personally, I'd rather eat a bit less on holiday as it's been so hard for me to lose weight over the last nine months. I'd be devastated if I ended up putting on weight while I was away.' Another added: 'I'm thinking I'm gonna have to be on this for life.' When you stop taking Mounjaro, God help Carmel Elizabeth Smith A third commented: 'I was fine for six weeks then bang…uncontrollable hunger.' Whilst someone else wrote: 'I'd never ever stop, it's not worth it, I did it once because of finance but I'd never do it on purpose.' Advertisement Meanwhile, another user questioned: 'So does this mean you are trapped in the expensive money go round?' To this, Carmel replied and confirmed: 'Looks that way.' The reality of Mounjaro Although many have boasted about A probe also found that nearly 400 people have gone to hospital after taking Advertisement The common side effects include nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea, which can lead to severe dehydration. What are the other side effects of weight loss jabs? Like any medication, weight loss jabs can have side effects. Common side effects of injections such as Ozempic include: Nausea : This is the most commonly reported side effect, especially when first starting the medication. It often decreases over time as your body adjusts. Vomiting : Can occur, often in conjunction with nausea. Diarrhea : Some people experience gastrointestinal upset. Constipation : Some individuals may also experience constipation. Stomach pain or discomfort : Some people may experience abdominal pain or discomfort. Reduced appetite : This is often a desired effect for people using Ozempic for weight loss. Indigestion : Can cause a feeling of bloating or discomfort after eating. Serious side effects can also include: Pancreatitis : In rare cases, Ozempic may increase the risk of inflammation of the pancreas, known as pancreatitis, which can cause severe stomach pain, nausea, and vomiting. Kidney problems : There have been reports of kidney issues, including kidney failure, though this is uncommon. Thyroid tumors : There's a potential increased risk of thyroid cancer, although this risk is based on animal studies. It is not confirmed in humans, but people with a history of thyroid cancer should avoid Ozempic. Vision problems : Rapid changes in blood sugar levels may affect vision, and some people have reported blurry vision when taking Ozempic. Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) : Especially if used with other medications like sulfonylureas or insulin. And if that wasn't bad enough, doctors say they have also seen 'life-threatening complications', including seizures, bowel obstruction and inflammation of the pancreas. Model Lottie Moss, 27, even said The makers of Mounjaro, Advertisement Lilly UK stressed: 'Regulatory agencies conduct extensive independent assessments of the benefits and risks of every new medicine and Lilly is committed to continually monitoring, evaluating, and reporting safety data. 'If anyone is experiencing side effects when taking any Lilly medicine, they should talk to their doctor or other healthcare professional.' Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme - Sun Club
Irish Examiner
31-05-2025
- Irish Examiner
Haribo recalls sweets in the Netherlands after traces of cannabis found
Space cake, weed cookies and hash brownies may be familiar fare in the Netherlands, but cannabis in bags of children's candy is not and Haribo has recalled its Happy Cola F!ZZ sweets after traces of the drug were found inside. Several people, including children, suffered 'health complaints, such as dizziness' after eating sweets from three 1kg packs, the Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) in the Netherlands said, adding that a full recall had been undertaken as a precaution. 'How the cannabis ended up in the sweets is still unknown,' a spokesperson for the authority told the Dutch news agency ANP. 'The police are investigating the matter further.' The authority said the packs concerned were genuine Haribo products. Dutch police said in a statement that a couple from the Twente region in the east of the country had brought a pack of the cola-bottle-shaped sweets to their local police station after their young children had become 'quite sick' after eating them. Forensic testing established the presence of cannabis. 'We want to know exactly how it got into the candy and, of course, how the bags ended up in the store,' a police spokesperson, Chantal Westerhoff, said. The sweets are sold in several pack sizes and only those in 1kg bags with a use-by date of January 2026 and a specific product code are affected, Haribo said, adding that a full refund would be paid for all packs returned. Patrick Tax, vice-president of marketing at Haribo, said the recall concerned 'a limited number of cases' in the east of the country. 'The safety of our consumers is our highest priority and Haribo takes this incident very seriously,' he said. 'This is a live issue and we are working closely with the Dutch authorities to support their investigation and establish the facts,' Tax told Agence France-Presse. The NVWA warned people bluntly: 'Do not eat these sweets.' In 2023, six children aged between four and 14 were taken ill in The Hague after eating candy containing THC, one of the active ingredients in cannabis, but the sweets concerned were not regular commercial products. Police said drug smugglers were increasingly using children's sweets as cover and cited several examples of gangs injecting THC into candy. Copies of Haribo's popular gummy bears containing THC can also be found online. - The Guardian
