Does Your Toddler’s Sippee Cup Contain Mold?

You’ve probably noticed the usual baby spam photos on your Facebook newsfeed have been replaced with pictures of moldy sippee cups. Gross.

A Facebook post last week prompted many parents to tear open their child’s sippee cups to reveal all manner of black mold lurking beneath.

The panic was prompted by one Facebook user in Canada who shared photos of her friend’s son’s Tommee Tippee sippee cup.

The Moldy Sippee Cup Caper

According to the original post, the dad had taken the cup apart after wondering why his son was struggling to fight off an illness. After forcing apart the cup’s valve, the dad discovered a lot of mold hiding on the inside. Once the valve is forced open, the cup is broken and can no longer be used, so it’s not a part of the cup that can be easily cleaned.

The post has now been shared almost 50,000 times and parents from across the world have commented in disgust. Many parents also took to social media themselves to post their own findings after checking the valve of their child’s sippee cups. The valve, which cannot be opened and cleaned without rendering the cup useless, was found by many parents to contain thick black mold which wouldn’t come away when washed. As you might expect, the internet freaked out and parents everywhere joined together to complain to Tommee Tippee on social media.

Tommee Tippee released a statement in response to the social media posts, explaining: “We want everyone to be happy with our products and we always want to exceed expectations. We’ve therefore listened to our customers, and will be launching a new Sippee cup in the next few months. The new cup will have a two piece valve that can be used with different types of liquid, and is easier to clean.

In the meantime, we are making the transparent, see-through valves shown here immediately available to parents that have concerns. The see-through valve will enable parents to see inside, and give you confidence that the valve is clean.“

If you would like to find out more or request a see-through valve, you should contact Tommee Tippee directly.

How To Clean A Sippee Cup

No matter what brand of sippy cup you have, it’s important that the cup is washed thoroughly between uses. You should always follow manufacturer’s instructions when washing the cup. If you’ve thrown the original instructions out, don’t worry, you’ll be able to find the washing instructions for the cup with a quick Google search.

If you have one of the Tommee Tippee single valve sippee cups, you should wash as follows:

1. Take the cup to bits, making sure to remove the valve when you do this.
2. All parts of the cup should be washed with warm, soapy water and rinsed with clean water after each use. The valve must only be washed by hand, but the rest of the cup can go on the top shelf of a dishwasher.
3. To properly rinse the valve, run clean water into each of the valve’s four openings.
4. Shake the parts to remove excess water and leave to air dry. The cup parts should be stored separately to allow for air circulation. You should only assemble the cup when in use.

Recommended Reading: Take a look at BellyBelly’s article This Silly But Important Video Could Save Your Baby’s Life.