Austria's AGES Warns Parents: Jars of HiPP Carrot-and-Potato Baby Food Tampered With Bromadiolone Rat Poison in Suspected Extortion

Austria's Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES) issued a public warning on April 18, 2026 after the Burgenland State Criminal Investigation Office (Landeskriminalamt Burgenland) seized a manipulated jar of HiPP baby food — the brand's 190-gram "Karotte mit Kartoffel" (carrot and potato) pouch for infants five months and older — that tested positive for rat poison.

HiPP has since pulled the product across Austria. SPAR, the chain that sold the affected jars, has removed all HiPP baby food jars from SPAR, EUROSPAR, INTERSPAR, and Maximarkt outlets nationwide. Vendors in Slovakia and the Czech Republic have also removed HiPP baby jars as a precaution.

What was found

AGES cites the Burgenland state police: a single jar was seized in the Eisenstadt-Umgebung district. The manipulated jar was marked with a white sticker bearing a red circle on the bottom of the glass, had a damaged lid, and did not produce the expected "Knack-Geräusch" — the pop sound of a vacuum-sealed lid opening for the first time. The seized jar tested positive for rat poison and the active ingredient was identified by investigators as bromadiolone, a second-generation anticoagulant rodenticide and vitamin K antagonist.

AGES warns that bromadiolone ingestion blocks the blood's ability to clot. Symptoms — gum bleeding, nosebleeds, bruises (hematomas), blood in stool — typically appear on a 2- to 5-day delay after exposure. Vitamin K is an effective antidote and treatment is "well manageable" if administered promptly.

What parents should check for

From the AGES guidance to parents and caregivers:

• Inspect the jar before opening. Look for a white sticker with a red circle on the glass bottom. Check the lid for damage. Listen for the pop sound when opening.
• Smell the contents. Any unusual or spoiled smell is a red flag.
• Do not consume or feed to a child any jar that shows any of the above.
• Seek medical care immediately for any bleeding, pronounced weakness, or paleness — and tell the physician which product may have been consumed.

HiPP is offering full refunds on returned jars regardless of receipt.

The extortion angle

AGES describes the operation as taking place "Im Rahmen von Ermittlungen der Kriminalpolizei" (within the context of a criminal police investigation). Austrian authorities have publicly characterized the case as a suspected extortion attempt — the pattern of a deliberately marked tampered jar is consistent with a demand sent to the manufacturer or retailer rather than an industrial contamination event. Only one manipulated jar has been found to date; both AGES and HiPP are conducting precautionary recalls to bound any additional risk.

The Burgenland Landeskriminalamt is asking the public to report any HiPP jars carrying the white-sticker-with-red-circle mark to the state police.