Stinky Graham Crackers? Some Consumers Complain Of 'Rancid' Smell

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — It sounds bizarre but all across the country people have been complaining about a foul taste and smell coming from graham crackers.

"I felt like I was being poisoned," said Erin Kinne from Lake Balboa, who explains that it wasn't the reaction she expected when eating a brand-new box of Honey Maid Graham Crackers.

"The first thought that came to my mine was like turpentine," she said. "Then my throat started burning."

Kinne took to social media posting about the problem and called the company.

"Somebody else called me and she told me that there are problems with it and that the oil went rancid in the factory, but they are not recalling any of the items," she said.

She found out that she wasn't alone as CBS2 found complaints all over the web.

One patron wrote, "graham crackers with a horrible smell," while another said: "greeted with an overpowering chemical smell," and a third wrote, "smelled rancid."

So what exactly is the smell?

Jon Trelfa runs a lab and tested similar graham crackers from Nabisco with that chemical smell. He says they came back with high levels of a chemical that's found in foods that have gone rancid.

"Nowhere from the box or the package here do I smell what would be called graham crackers," he said.

CBS2 reached out to Mondelez International, Inc., which makes the Honey Maid Graham Crackers in Kinne's case.

They say, "Our analysts tested the product and it came back normal in all respects in appearance and taste."

In some cases, the companies say it could be as simple as people using the product well beyond the expiration date.

Regardless, Kinne says she's not sure when she'll ever buy another box of graham crackers.

"I won't, I can't even look at them," she said.

Mondelez International said anyone who experiences a problem with a product is advised to return said product and contact customer service.