What I Found in My Grocery Store Strawberries — And What You Should Do If It Happens to You
Like clockwork, every Sunday, I hit the grocery store.
Fresh produce.
Organic labels.
A careful scan of every package.
It’s a ritual — one that feels safe. Normal. Predictable.
But one morning, that sense of safety shattered.
I had bought a basket of plump, glossy red strawberries — the kind that look too perfect to be real. I couldn’t wait to enjoy them with my morning coffee.
I tore open the plastic wrap.
And then I froze.
Because nestled among the fruit — almost camouflaged by the leaves — was something that didn’t belong.
A long, thin, dark object — coiled slightly, motionless at first glance.
I blinked.
Waited.
Then I saw it.
It moved.
Just a twitch.
A faint, rhythmic pulse — like a breath. A tremor. A slow, deliberate shift.
My stomach dropped.
This wasn’t a string.
Not a vine.
Not a piece of packaging.
It was alive.
And it was trapped inside the sealed container.
What Was It?
My mind raced.
Snake? No — too small.
Worm? Too thick, too segmented.
Then it hit me.
It was a larva.
Possibly a spotted wing drosophila pupa — a common fruit fly species that lays eggs in soft, ripening fruit.
Or worse — a caterpillar that had been sealed in with the berries during packing.
Either way, it wasn’t supposed to be there.
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