He said Mr Guna told him he had placed the loaf near the refrigerator at home and Mr Phua thought that the warm and humid conditions may have caused the bread to go bad faster.

He said: 'We wanted to find out what had happened and offered to visit him at his home, but Mr Guna would not let us do so, nor would he let us take photographs of the loaf.'

Mr Phua said he offered to reimburse Mr Guna for the loaf he bought, his medical bills and an additional $200 to $300 for any medical leave he may have been given as he felt that was the right thing to do.

He said: 'But Mr Guna said we should also compensate him for his mental distress, and I said that I could not give more than that.'

Mr Guna confirmed that he felt he should be compensated for the 'suffering' he went through.

When he told Mr Phua that he may consider taking legal action, Mr Phua said he told him he could do so.

Mr Phua said: 'But I added that what was more important was that we tried to find out what went wrong first so that there would be no other victims.

'I told Mr Guna he could go to the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA), and I said the company was willing to take the punishment, like a fine, if we were found responsible.'

Mr Guna denied not letting Mr Phua visit him.

He said he put the bread on his kitchen table after buying it, as he had always done.

He also said Mr Phua never suggested taking photographs of the bread.

VOLUNTARY LABELLING

THE shelf life of food products are affected by many factors including the composition, packaging and their storage condition, Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) spokesman Goh Shih Yong said.

'Poor storage and improper handling can also result in green fungus growing on the bread,' he said. 'Bread should also be kept in a dry place and not handled with wet hands.'

Mr Goh said it was not mandatory in Singapore for all pre-packed food, including bread, to be marked with a date of manufacture and expiry date, and such labelling seen on loaves here is voluntary.

He said they could not yet conclude that Mr Guna's illness was caused by eating the bread, and Mr Guna could call AVA at 6325 7625 to give more details.

He said: 'We would also like to know what else he ate that day, besides bread, and whether he gave this information to the doctor.'

This story was first published in The New Paper on Nov 17, 2008.