Nescafe Canned Coffee Explosion Raises Questions About Packaging and Altitude

A consumer in Xi'an reported that opening a can of Nescafe Absolute Black ground coffee caused an explosion of powder, covering her face and clothes and leaving a cut near her nose. The coffee also shot into her eyes, requiring her to remove contact lenses and rinse them. When she contacted the seller and manufacturer, they attributed the incident to altitude and air pressure, offering only two cans of coffee and refusing to cover medical or lens costs.

The response has sparked online debate, with many questioning the explanation and noting similar incidents with other brands like illy. Front Street Coffee points out that canned ground coffee often lacks safety warnings about pressure buildup. This incident underscores the need for clearer labeling and better consumer protection, especially for products that can become hazardous when opened.

Recently, a consumer in Xi'an posted on social media that when she opened a can of Nescafe Absolute Black ground coffee purchased from an e-commerce platform, the coffee powder burst out like an explosion, leaving a mess on her face, clothes, and floor, and even causing a wound near her nose. After contacting the seller and manufacturer, they explained it away as being due to altitude and air pressure, and were only willing to give her two cans of coffee powder, refusing to compensate for contact lenses or medical expenses. The incident sparked heated discussion online, with many questioning the customer service explanation and noting that brands such as illy have also had similar incidents. Front Street Coffee has noticed that the lack of safety warnings on canned ground coffee deserves industry attention.

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Recently, a consumer from Xi'an posted on social media with the title "Never buy Nescafe canned coffee — it's not coffee, it's a bomb," which quickly attracted widespread attention and sparked discussion.

The poster said she had purchased Nescafe Absolute Black canned ground coffee through an e-commerce channel. After receiving the package, she opened the can as usual, but the moment she tore open the packaging, "the coffee powder inside the can burst out like an explosion." The powder sprayed in all directions, covering her face, clothes, and floor, and leaving a two-to-three-millimeter wound on the skin near her nose.

The netizen mentioned that because the ejected coffee powder shot directly into her eyes, she instantly could not see anything and had to immediately remove her contact lenses and rinse with solution before her vision improved slightly, which was why she could not capture the scene at the moment it happened. After the incident, the consumer immediately contacted the e-commerce seller to explain the situation, but customer service said they could not handle it and only provided a phone number, telling her to communicate directly with the manufacturer.

So after the netizen called the manufacturer, the other party responded that the product had no quality problems whatsoever, so they bore no responsibility. As a gesture of concern, they could give two cans of coffee powder, but could not meet the consumer's request for compensation for contact lens costs and follow-up medical examination expenses.

As for why the canned ground coffee suddenly exploded, customer service explained that the consumer's city is at a relatively high altitude, and the canned product was affected by local air pressure, which caused the situation. But the poster believed that if the product could explode due to regional environmental factors, the brand should have put a warning on the packaging. However, on the outer packaging of the can and at the opening, no related text warnings or precautions were found.

Netizens following the matter questioned the customer service explanation. Some said, "If Xi'an is at a high altitude, then are people in Inner Mongolia not even worthy of buying this kind of thing?" Others said, "This is so dangerous, they should mark all cans clearly," and some joked, "May I ask, do sellers need to wear protective masks to open this coffee?" and "Pressure can make it explode?"

It is worth mentioning that when searching for coffee powder explosions on social media, one finds that another well-known brand, illy, has also been reported by users multiple times for similar situations. Many people posted the disastrous scenes after coffee powder burst out, speculating that to ensure product quality, the brand filled the cans with too much nitrogen, causing the coffee powder inside to spray out due to pressure changes when some people opened the packaging.

Therefore, in consumers' view, this type of canned ground coffee may itself carry some risks, and brands should put explanatory notes on the outer packaging. They pointed out that illy's product details do include precautions, reminding consumers to pull it open slowly to let the gas escape.

A media reporter called Nescafe's consumer service hotline as a consumer to learn more. Customer service staff said that when there is no damage, leakage, or other problem with the can, the coffee powder "exploding" upon opening should be caused by air pressure, and advised consumers not to shake the can when opening it.

When the reporter followed up by asking whether Xi'an's air pressure could cause this phenomenon, the customer service representative stressed that all products undergo strict inspection procedures before leaving the factory, with controls implemented at every stage from raw material procurement to packaging and shipment, but did not respond directly to the reporter's question. In addition, customer service said that the suggestion to "mark specific explanations and reminders on the product" had been recorded and would be further fed back.

Image source: Internet

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.