This woman is begging Capri Sun for answers after allegedly finding a slug inside one of the plastic packets. She expressed her concerns in a TikTok post that garnered over 357,000 views since April 25.
In the clip, user Mayra Llamas (@mayrallamas_) films inside the cut-open Capri Sun, showing a dark brown slug squirming in the juice. She then films a man washing his mouth out in the sink before zooming in on the slug. They’ve removed it from the juice and placed the live pest atop a plastic bag.
Ingesting slugs can be harmful to humans and animals. They can carry parasites like the one that causes a disease known as rat lungworm, per the National Library of Medicine.
Is this a common issue with Capri Suns?
The nostalgic juice brand is no stranger to controversial contaminations.
A 2020 story from the St. Vincent Times, a newspaper serving the Caribbean island chain Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, reports a similar finding to Llamas. The article claims a mother in Arnos Vale found a black slug inside her son’s Capri Sun juice.
While slugs have not been widely reported, Capri Suns are susceptible to mold if their packaging is compromised. Capri Sun juice does not contain preservatives, so when oxygen gets into the package, mold can grow.
After several customers’ reports of mold went viral in the early 2010s, Capri Sun rolled out new packaging with a clear bottom in 2014, per Bloomberg. That way, customers could see if their thirst-quenching beverage was mold-free before tasting it.
What happened to Capri Suns’ clear bottoms?
Several viewers of Llamas’ video noted that customers can’t see through the foil of the beverage anymore.
“Don’t drink out of anything you can’t see through,” one commenter wrote.
“Y’all don’t remember when they were making them with a clear bottom?? I been scared since,” another said.
“Caprisun has had too much weird stuff inside for my liking.. always cut them open and pour in a cup frfr,” a further user added.
But why did they change their packaging again?
In 2022, Capri Sun returned to foil-bottom packaging permanently. The company announced the change in response to one concerned X user, citing supply chain issues.
But how did a slug get into a Capri Sun?
Whether the bottom is clear or not, finding a slug inside your Capri Sun isn’t a happy surprise. Still, it’s unclear how the pest ended up in Llamas’ beverage.
In response to one commenter, Llamas said the man in the video wasn’t aware of the slug until he drank it. “But how’d you know it was inside?” the viewer asked.
“We didn’t until he felt it in his mouth when he drank out of the Capri Sun,” Llamas said, tagging the brand’s TikTok account in her comment. “So disgusting.”
Several commenters noted that land slugs cannot survive for long in liquids. In fact, a common tactic for getting rid of slugs pestering your garden includes drowning them in an enticing beverage. This is most often beer, as slugs are drawn to the yeast, however, some gardeners report using orange juice to lure them in.
Also, if the Capri Sun packet was properly heat-sealed, a slug could not survive inside. They, too, need oxygen to live.
@mayrallamas_ @Caprisun count your days!!!!!#dontbuycaprisun #disgusting #slugincaprisun #wewantanswers #fyp #parati ♬ WTHELLY – Rob49
As one commenter suggested, it’s possible the slug snuck into the juice after they had opened it. “This could have easily climbed in while he was sat it down no way it would survive months packaged in juice lol,” they wrote.
The Daily Dot reached out to Capri Sun’s parent company Kraft Heinz via email, as well as to Llamas via TikTok direct message for more information.
Update 2:30pm ET, April 28: In an email to the Daily Dot, a Capri Sun representative shared the following: “After closely reviewing this claim, we believe that this is a doctored video. This is not something that would be feasible given our preparation and packaging process. At Capri Sun, we are committed to upholding the highest safety and quality standards of our products.“
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