Over 40 people were affected by food poisoning in Spain after being invited to a lunch hosted by the producers of the Spanish edition of the hit TV show, Masterchef.
The incident took place after 44 diners were invited to a recording of the reality TV show in Valencia on 19 January and was confirmed to local media by health officials. The episode was aired earlier this week. Symptoms included vomiting and diarrhoea.
MasterChef is a popular reality television cooking show broadcast in several countries where contestants make a range of dishes, which are judged by experts.
Reports first surfaced on Twitter with a woman reporting she was one of many people who had fallen sick after tasting food served outside an aquarium in Valencia for staff as part of the programme. A range of items, including seafood, were prepared for about 120 people. The woman claimed in her post that ‘out of 70 people, more than half’ ended up with food poisoning.
Analysis, traceability information, and documentation of the process and treatment of food used and cooked were shown to health authorities.
However, officials were unable to find the source of the infection because of the time that had passed since the event meaning there was no food left to test.
The producer of the programme in Spain, Shine Iberia, has since apologised to the affected diners.
‘This is an absolutely exceptional case in these 11 years of MasterChef in Spain, a programme where it is an absolute priority to guarantee the nutritional care of the people involved,’ a statement read.
The RTVE show had travelled to Valencia to film outside the Oceanogràfic, where contestants cooked a menu prepared by chef Rakel Cernicharo. The episode was broadcast on 10 April.
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