AN eight-year-old boy didn’t quite get the treat he was hoping for when he tucked into sweets from Halloween last week, cutting his tongue on a piece of metal embedded in the lollipop.

Now his mother, Harriet Glenn of Topstreet Way, Harpenden, is urging others to be vigilant in case there are other affected sweets in the district.

The blackcurrant lollipop is a Fruity Pop made by Swizzels Matlow and the sharp metal pin-like object sticks straight out of the sweet. Her son was given the sweet when out trick-or-treating on Halloween.

Harriet said: “My son was sucking on the lollipop when he told me it was a bit sharp but I thought he’d cracked the sweet and created a rough edge. Then he showed me what he’d found and it was a very big shock to see such a sharp piece of metal sticking out.

“He hadn’t seriously hurt himself, thankfully, but it was a lollipop we had been going to give my two-year-old, so the injuries could have been more serious for her. However, the main reason I wanted to get a picture in the paper is because I worry there may be other sweets out there with similar pieces of metal in them.”

Concerned that others might have bought tainted sweets from the manufacturer or received them in the same way her son had done, Harriet contacted the sweet company who were very apologetic and eager to help her.

Jeremy Dee, director at Swizzels Matlow, said they were concerned and surprised by the incident.

He added: “Product safety is paramount to us and we have very strict quality control procedures including metal checking of all our products. As this is the first time we’ve heard of this complaint, once we receive the product from the customer, we will of course launch a full investigation.”

Harriet received a recorded delivery envelope the day after lodging the complaint, asking for her to return the product to the manufacturers.

Before she does this, the mother of two has been in touch with the local Environmental Health department which has launched an investigation.

A spokesperson for St Albans district council said: “The district council has the responsibility for enforcing food safety legislation in food premises.

“The aim is to protect public health in relation to food which includes investigating complaints relating to foreign bodies.”