WHEN Mr Brandon Lee read The Sunday Times' article last week on bad hygiene in restaurant kitchens, he admitted to being "somewhat sceptical" of the stories being recounted.

He did not imagine he would have a rude discovery the next morning himself.

While slicing a loaf of low glycemic index (GI) bread he had bought from Carrefour at Suntec City just two days earlier, a 2.5cm nail fell out.

"Luckily I didn't eat the bread. I'm more concerned if there are others out there because the nail looked like it was chipped," said the 35-year-old private tutor.

Carrefour sent two representatives to his home to inspect the nail and the loaf the following day.

A Carrefour spokesman said the company launched a "thorough investigation" and pulled all its stocks from the shelves.

The low GI bread was made at the supermarket chain's in-house bakery.

Carrefour said it has checked every detail of the production process, from storage of ingredients to personnel.
"Every stage has been scrutinised, including the mixing equipment and the hand rolling as well as the 1cm-thick dough," its spokesman said. "This is an isolated case, which we take very seriously."

The National Environment Agency also sent officers to check Carrefour's baking facilities after being alerted by Mr Lee.

The agency's spokesman said it had found the bakery to be clean and well-maintained. "The nail that was found in the loaf appears to be an isolated case," he said.

Mr Lee said he was not asking for any compensation since he was not harmed. But Carrefour has refunded the $17 worth of bread he bought from it.

Last week's Sunday Times story about the dirty secrets behind kitchen doors here drew more than 30 postings on the paper's website.

Retail manager Ronie Ng, 37, wrote to The Sunday Times about his son's bad experience in the school canteen earlier this year: The four-year-old almost ate a chicken nugget with a worm on it.