Man allegedly fails drug test for new job after eating Tesco poppy seed bread

‘The possibility of false-positive opiate drug tests after poppy food ingestion exists,’ study says

Poppy seed bread (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

A man reportedly failed a drug test at a job interview after eating Tesco poppy seed bread.

His sister, Danielle Chalkley, posted a warning on Facebook on 9 June, claiming that her brother had tested positive for opium in his system, despite him being scared of drugs and painkillers.

“Just a quick one for everyone to be aware of. My brother went for a job interview today and had to do a drug test. He failed, with opium in his system,” she wrote.

Explaining what might have caused him to fail the test, she said he had visited her the day before and taken some bread containing poppy seeds home with him.

Chalkley said her brother ate two pieces on 8 June and planned to eat two more on 9 June.

“Poppy seeds caused him to fail his drugs test. As he failed, he didn’t get the job,” she wrote, adding that the employer did not believe her brother’s negative test was a result of eating the bread.

“Do not eat seeded bread with poppy seeds two to three days before a drugs test,” she warned.

One study, published in the Therapeutic Drug Monitoring journal in 2010 concluded that “the possibility of false-positive opiate drug tests after poppy food ingestion exists”.

It said that there are no “unambiguous markers available” in drug testing to “differentiate poppy food ingestion from heroin or pharmaceutical morphine use”.

Healthline, a provider of medical information, said the more poppy seeds a person consumes, the higher the chances of testing positive.

Tesco told Plymouth Live that it has several policies in place and works closely with its suppliers to ensure “low opiate varieties” are used in its products and that they follow guidance by the EU and UK to minimise the levels present as far as possible.

The Independent has contacted Tesco for comment.