Two hospitalized in Beijing after consuming misdelivered narcissus bulbs

Two Beijing residents were recently hospitalized after eating what they thought were lilies but were in fact toxic narcissus bulbs, according to a report from Henan Daily.

An order for lilies was placed on Jan 2 through Freshippo, the grocery retail arm of Alibaba Group. The narcissus bulbs were mistakenly delivered instead. According to the report, the customer's mother, aged 71, did not notice and made soup using the narcissus bulbs. She and her 12-year-old grandson ate the soup, after which she developed a severe headache, vomiting, and other symptoms.

Freshippo told China Daily that the error occurred during order pick-up, when narcissus bulbs from another order in the same time slot were mistakenly placed in the customer's package. The company said it has revised relevant procedures to prevent similar incidents.

"The company contacted the customer immediately and learned that the two had been taken to the hospital on the evening of Jan 2 and discharged on Jan 3. We have set up a special team to follow the case and develop a compensation plan," a Freshippo representative said.

The representative added that the matter of compensation is still under negotiation.

Fresh lily slices sold on the Freshippo app come in sealed boxed packaging. They bear text labels, as do the narcissus bulb packaging. The bulbs are no longer searchable on the app.

According to the Hangzhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, unbloomed narcissus closely resembles some edible plants, including garlic sprouts. The plant contains multiple toxins that can cause nausea, vomiting, skin swelling, breathing difficulty, and even shock. There is no specific antidote.