Tokyo: A Japanese man was taken to hospital with a fish hook in his intestines after eating a hamburger from a convenience store, police said today.

The 19-year-old, from the western city of Himeji, complained of stomach pains late Sunday after eating the hamburger, which his mother had bought from the nearby FamilyMart store, a local police spokesman said.

When he checked the bag in which the hamburger came the man found a fish hook about one centimetre (0.4 inches) long, he said.

"Then he went to hospital and the doctor found in the X-ray picture another fish hook in his small intestine," the spokesman added.

The man's mother lodged a complaint with the store, which then reported the case to the police.

The spokesman added that the teenager could face surgery to remove the hook if doctors were unable to remove it naturally.

FamilyMart Co Ltd, one of Japan's major convenience store chains, said it has recalled hamburgers sold at shops in western Japan.

"FamilyMart will thoroughly investigate the case to find out what caused the problem, including the possibility that the foreign objects might have come from the factory," it said in a statement.

Japan has been hit by a series of health scares in recent months.

Ten people required hospital treatment for pesticide poisoning after eating Chinese-made frozen dumplings, leading the two countries to investigate the safety of food.
Source : PTI