THE strawberry contamination scare has now spread the length of the country, with authorities in Western Australia confirming the state’s first case.

A member of the public went to York Police Station, west of Perth, to report the discovery on Monday afternoon.

The man told police he spotted a needle in his kitchen sink after preparing strawberries for his family.

“He did not recall the needle being in the sink prior to preparing the strawberries,” a WA Police spokesperson said.

The strawberries in question were “produced and packaged in Western Australia”, the spokesperson said, although the brand has not yet been released.

The news came just minutes before authorities in South Australia confirmed a second case there, with a needle found in a punnet of Mal’s Black Label strawberries purchased from Adelaide Fresh Fruiterers in Morphett Vale.

A consumer discovered a metal object embedded in one of the strawberries when cutting into it, police said.

Yesterday, a seven-year-old girl from the Adelaide Hills was lucky to escape serious injury when she bit into a strawberry containing a hidden sewing needle.

“She bit into one of the strawberries and discovered a needle, which she told her mum about,” Detective Inspector Billy Thompson told reporters today.

“The father took the strawberries to the store in Littlehampton, reported it to the manager, who in turn advised that the matter should be reported to police.”

That batch of the fruit originated in WA, forcing the state’s Health Minister Roger Cook to insist this morning that people should be “very confident” about local strawberries.

“There has been no incident of tampering of strawberry products in WA,” he told reporters today, just hours before the needle discovery in Perth.

The strawberry industry has been in chaos since the first discovery of a needle in a punnet of strawberries bought in Burpengary in Queensland more than a week ago.

In that case, a man who bit into a strawberry with a needle inside it and ended up in hospital.

Since then, needles or pins have been reported in strawberries in New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and the ACT.

Affected brands include Berry Obsession, Berry Licious, Love Berry, Donnybrook Berries, Delightful Strawberries and Oasis.

A nationwide manhunt is under way for the culprit or culprits responsible for the numerous cases of deliberate contamination.

Consumers are urged to cut up any strawberries before eating them.