A SOUTH Ham man was surprised to see an ingredient added to his meal that was not on the menu - plastic.

Rodney Thomas ordered a burger meal from McDonald’s in Winchester Street on October 1.

However, when his dinner arrived, he was shocked to discover blue plastic, pictured, in his meal.

Mr Thomas said: “It was a good thing that I flipped the burger over to check it before I started eating it, or I could well have eaten it. It looked disgusting.

“I called up the shop and they didn’t believe me when I told them about what had happened.

“When I spoke to head office, they told me that they wanted to see it for lab testing, but I didn’t want to send it to them, instead I asked locally at the council.

“They tested the bright blue material and confirmed that it was plastic.”

After this, the 24-year-old claims that McDonald’s tried to put the blame on Uber Eats, the company that delivered the food.

“It’s them I feel most upset for,” Mr Thomas added. “They just delivered it.

“I know that companies cannot be perfect all of the time, but they have been acting like they don’t care.

“I do not want to eat there again, I’ve had no reassurances that things will improve or be taken care of.

“I just want an apology and for this not to happen to anyone else.”

About the incident, a McDonald’s spokesperson said: “Food quality and safety are of the utmost importance to us. We place great emphasis on quality control and follow rigorous standards in order to avoid any imperfections.

“We’re sorry that this wasn’t up to standard this time around, and we are aware of the customer’s complaint.

“When they returned to the restaurant we provided an apology and offered a full refund which was refused, with the customer opting to collect a replacement meal in the future.”

“Unfortunately, when asked, the customer was unwilling to leave the food in question with us so it could be investigated by a third party.”