A Michigan woman’s scary run-in with a creepy, crawly spider serves as a great reminder of the importance of washing your fresh produce when you bring it home, because there could be a black widow spider just hanging out in that bunch of grapes, you know, just waiting for you.

WXYZ-TV in Detroit reports that the woman had started washing the grapes she’d just purchased at Walmart when a black widow crawled out.

“I’ve never seen one before in person and then here it is, ‘Hi!’” she said.

After meeting her new friend, the woman wasn’t sure what to do, so she called 9-1-1.

“When I called them, I said ‘This isn’t really an emergency, but I have a black widow spider’ and he’s like ‘Just kill it’ and I’m like ‘Me? You want me to kill it?’”

Her brother and her boyfriend took the spider outside and sprayed it with insect killer until it was dead, CBS Detroit reports.

While the woman tells WXYZ that she’s glad the spider was found before anyone was hurt, she doesn’t think she’ll be buying grapes anytime soon.

The Troy-area Walmart where the woman bought the fruit says they are investigating the unwelcome critter.

“When it comes to food safety, we take all allegations seriously,” the company says in statement. “We are working to investigate all aspects of this allegation and taking appropriate measures to fully understand what may have happened. Our stores have procedures in place to help ensure products meet our high expectations for fresh, quality food.”

Produce is routinely checked by U.S. Customs, but from time to time insects and other things slip through. That’s certainly been the case lately when it comes to black widow spiders and grapes.

Black widow spiders like to build webs in vineyards, where they snack on insects and are generally helpful.

While they don’t want to end up in a colander in a suburban home, it’s a good idea to check your fruit before eating it, especially red grapes, which provide spiders with more cover. Remove grapes from the package before washing. Look for any insects. Don’t reach into the middle of the bag.

Just this year, Consumerist has reported on two incidents of the spiders found in the bunches of fruit, including one that resulted in a woman hospitalized with a bite.

In that case, which happened in May, the woman had purchased grapes from a Shaw’s supermarket in Massachusetts. The woman was reportedly hospitalized after she reached her hand into the bag of fruit and the spider crawled up her arm and took a bite.

People bitten by black widows might experience some muscle pain, experts say, requiring treatment at the hospital to have the situation monitored. Severe cases can require anti-venom, and most people are back to normal after a few days.

 

Woman finds black widow spider in bag of grapes from Troy Walmart [WXYZ ABC 7]
Troy Woman Says Black Widow Found In Grapes Bought At Walmart [CBS Detroit]

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