Australian Shoppers Find Live Palm-Sized Frog in $1.15 Woolworths Lettuce
New Zealand flatmates Laura Jones and Billie Le Pine discovered a live frog in discounted Woolworths lettuce in Esperance, Western Australia, prompting investigation.
Two New Zealand flatmates shopping in Esperance, Western Australia found a live frog the size of a man's palm inside a sealed bag of discounted lettuce from Woolworths that cost just $1.15.
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Laura Jones and Billie Le Pine discovered the amphibian after their flatmate opened the reduced-price lettuce packet and called out from the kitchen. The pair appeared on ABC News Breakfast to describe what Jones called "the most random thing" they had encountered in their grocery shopping.
Look, if I was in a French supermarket, I probably would have got a two for one deal on that one.
Company Launches Investigation
Woolworths called the incident "isolated" and said it was investigating "as a priority." A company spokesperson said suppliers maintain "rigorous processes" for product quality, including washing lettuce heads and conducting "a number of quality checks" to detect foreign materials before packaging.
The discovery highlights potential gaps in food safety protocols at major Australian retailers. Woolworths operates over 1,000 stores across Australia and processes millions of produce items weekly through its supply chain.
Jones and Le Pine named the frog Greg and gave it a ceremonial release into a nearby dam. Le Pine's thick accent required ABC host James Glenday to ask him to repeat the frog's name during the interview.
We thought we'd give him a wee send off tune. And we played him Crazy Frog for him. So he was pretty happy again.
Food Safety Questions Raised
The incident occurred in Esperance, a coastal town on Western Australia's Southern Ocean shore. The town was named after a French frigate and maintains a sister city relationship with St Martin de Ré in France.
Food safety experts note that live animals in packaged produce indicate potential contamination risks beyond the obvious shock value. The sealed plastic packaging suggests the frog entered the supply chain during processing rather than at the retail level.
Woolworths has not disclosed which supplier provided the lettuce or whether other products from the same batch were recalled. The company processes produce from dozens of Australian farms and international suppliers for distribution across its national network.
