The Australian scare over needles found in strawberries has spread to New Zealand after needles were found in a container of the fruit in an Auckland supermarket.

The Countdown supermarket chain said it had taken a brand of Australian strawberries off the shelves.

There have been over 100 reports of needles being found in supermarket fruit in Australia.

Many are thought to be copycat cases or social media stunts.

The strawberries in Auckland, originally from Western Australia state, were sold in New Zealand Countdown stores nationwide last week.

The company said in a statement there had been no reports of any illness or injury in New Zealand, but the chain advised customers to cut up any Australian strawberries before eating them.

[Source: BBC]