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Soylent Customers Say Food Bars Made Them 'Violently Ill'
Soylent, the meal replacement product of our dystopian future, has halted the sale of its bars after numerous customers said they got sick after eating them. Customers reported stomach pain, vomiting and diarrhea, and Soylent isn't sure why. Los Angeles-based Soylent announced its latest product, a 250-calorie food bar, only a month or so ago. On Wednesday, they ceased the sale of the product indefinitely. It is listed as "currently unavailable" on the company's website, though their other products—such as Coffiest and their meal replacement drinks—are unaffected.
According to Gizmodo, customers began talking about the issue on a subreddit for Soylent users.
One thread began:
So I have ate a total of about 4 bars now, all different days, and I keep ending up in one or two spots: so nauseous I have to puke, followed by horrible diarrhea -option 2 I don't get nauseous but still have uncontrollable diarrhea I drink soylent 2.0 every day for breakfast, which is how I know it is these bars. Every time I skips 2.0 and just use the bar I end up sick.
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Others users soon chimed in with similar stories. Soylent told Gizmodo that they’d sent the bars for “microbiological testing,” but the tests results were negative. They also said they took back several bars from customers, ate the bars themselves, and experienced no negative side effects. Still, they have suspended the sale and released the following statement via a blog post.
Our customers place an enormous amount of trust in us each and every time they place an order. We in turn owe it to our customers to prioritize their health and well-being above all else. Until we are absolutely certain our products are safe, they will not be shipped.
Soylent just held a pop-up in downtown Los Angeles last weekend where they handed out free samples of their latest products, including the bars.
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