'Smells like vomit': Woman says Soup Spoon's ready-to-eat soup exploded in fridge, left terrible stench

Ready-to-eat meals are perfect for days when one needs a quick bite.

But instead of getting a simple meal, Lemon8 user Momorie was shocked after the packet of takeaway soup she bought exploded in her fridge. 

Taking to the social media app on Saturday (Aug 22), Momorie shared that she bought The Soup Spoon's SG Chicken & Mushroom Ragout 'Take Home Soup Pack' as it was her favourite dish.

With at least a month left to expiry, Momorie said the $10 soup pack had become bloated after a week in the fridge.

On The Soup Spoon's official website, it is stated that the minimum shelf life for the soup pack is four weeks, stored under chilled conditions of zero to four degrees celsius. It is also stated that the soup pack has to be consumed within three days after opening.

Momorie wrote in her post: "Because it was so bloated, it actually had minor gaps that resulted in leaks all over my fridge. My fridge ended up smelling like vomit."

The stench from the soup was unbearable that Momorie said: "I kid you not, I don't think I can ever drink The Soup Spoon ever again and the odour was so strong I really had to will myself to deal with it."

Packaged food that has become bloated is a clear indication that bacteria are present inside the packet. The bacteria in the packet feeds on the contents, producing gas which then causes the packet to bloat.

To deal with the mess made by the soup pack, Momorie shared that she emptied out her fridge and gave it a deep clean.

She added that she also placed a bowl of citrus peels inside the fridge as a pleasant scent and to neutralise the odour.

She added: "It's been 2 weeks now and there is still some slight odour left but already a big progress from the stench at the start."

 "I hope no one has to ever experience this. But if you do, good luck!"

Sharing the tips and tricks that helped her get rid of the smell, Momorie added that she read that placing activated charcoal inside the fridge "works like magic" but she has yet to try it. 

AsiaOne has reached out to Momorie for comment. 

In response to AsiaOne's queries, The Soup Spoon shared that their Take-Home Soup Packs are subject to a proprietary high-pressure processing preservation technique that "guarantees food safety and achieves an extended shelf life".

They noted though that there may be a possibility of an undetected defect in the external packaging or a case of "involuntary temperature abuse", which may compromise the freshness of the Take-Home Soup Packs.

However, they shared that these are "very rare occurrences" and may be compounded by the channel which the Take-Home Soup Pack was purchased.

"We reaffirm our commitment for quality control and mitigate the impact on the customer's confidence in our products by following up with an investigation to verify the source of the Take-Home Soup Pack(s) and offer a possible recourse, if we are successful in an attempt to establish a channel of communication with our customer," said Dennis Wong, assistant director of marketing at The Soup Spoon.

Netizens were shocked by Momorie's encounter, with one user saying: "I never knew this could happen! looks like it's Campbell soup for me all the way!"

In response to the comments, Momorie said: "It's not even the meal or money being wasted anymore but it has caused so much inconvenience to my life. I spent hours cleaning my fridge."

Another user shared a tip for Momorie: "You can try putting in dry coffee grounds in the fridge to help with the odour! I swear it absorbs the odour like magic and it definitely helped when I had kimchi that did the same thing."

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