Report: Poop bacteria discovered in Starbucks, other chain iced drinks in the UK

Updated

You might want to nix your iced coffee fix this summer – at least if you're taking a trip to the U.K. anytime soon.

A BBC investigation discovered that iced drinks from coffee chains Costa Coffee, Starbucks and Caffe Nero all had various levels of bacteria found in feces in the ice.

One expert from the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, Tony Lewis, called the findings "concerning," saying that "these should not be present at any level." The investigation is going to air on BBC One Wednesday night at 8 p.m. U.K. time.

The BBC reports seven out of the 10 ice samples from Costa had bacteria found in feces, while Starbucks and Caffe Nero had bacteria called "fecal coliforms" in just three out of 10 samples.

Starbucks is starting its own investigation, saying that the company takes hygiene "extremely seriously," and Caffe Nero too is launching its own investigation.

A Daily Mail investigation from 2013 found that ice in six out of 10 restaurants in Britain contained more bacteria than toilet water – specifically Starbucks, McDonald's, Burger King, KFC, Cafe Rouge and Nando's. In this case, these samples weren't immediately dangerous, though were referred to as a "hygiene risk."

In Starbucks' case, there was "more bacteria in ice than toilets but within laboratory hygiene guidelines," reported the Daily Mail at the time.

RELATED: The 25 best fast-food chains

More on AOL.com:
Man alleges Starbucks has made him poop '11 times since the AM,' goes viral on Facebook
Darden shares hit all-time high after CEO says millennials are not actually killing chains like Olive Garden
There's a chance Walmart will go head-to-head with Amazon to buy Whole Foods

Should I Wash the Turkey Before Cooking It?

How to Disinfect Germ Hotspots

Advertisement