O'FALLON, Ill. — When Rebecca Glasper packed up her daughter's lunch Wednesday morning, she didn't expect to find a tiny eyeball-like object in it.
The yellowish orb with brown "veins" and a magenta center is the size of a large gumball. It's squishy and has a chemical smell. And it was found inside of a Bob Evans store-bought mac and cheese.
"I started to scoop it out and it was the exact same color as the cheese," the O'Fallon, Illinois mom told 5 On Your Side. "So I actually took the fork initially to try to smash it to blend it, thinking that the cheese hadn't melted in the microwave. When I realized that it wasn't smashing, that's when I said, what in the world is this."
Grossed out and concerned, Glasper started making calls. She did not get far.
"The Bob Evans number that is on the website, it takes you in a cyclical race," she said. "It is unsuccessful. It tells you to hit three and then when it hits three it disconnects."
When 5 On Your Side checked the number, we got the same result.
Glasper went to where she bought the macaroni and cheese, the store referred her back to Bob Evans. She got through to someone at Bob Evans who told her to try her local chamber of commerce. The Chamber of Commerce sent her back to Bob Evans. From there she tried the USDA and the health department.
"I have reached out to everyone I can think of," Glasper said. "What I found was a major choking hazard and not just for a kid, because I have a 7-year-old, but for adults too. It's a major choking hazard and my story could have been so much different."
She would like to know what it is, but she also wants to know that it's unlikely to happen again.
"I understand mistakes happen," Glasper told 5 On Your Side. "I get that. It's an assembly line. But when they do happen, my expectation is that I get the attention that it deserves and that I get some sort of response. There was no sense of urgency and they have been passing the ball."
5 On Your Side asked Bob Evans press office for help directing Glasper to the right person. No one at Bob Evans has responded to the email.
5 On Your Side spoke with a representative from the St. Clair County Department of Public Health. The representative said the department does not have the lab equipment to test such an item. St. Clair County referred 5 On Your Side to the Illinois State Department of Public Health. The department has not yet responded.
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