Following online reports of customers becoming ill after eating Soylent’s new snack bars, the company announced this afternoon that it has decided to halt all sales and shipments of the bars as a precautionary measure. The company is urging customers to discard remaining bars and will begin e-mailing customers individually regarding refunds.

In a blog announcing the decision, the company said it is still investigating the cause of bouts of illnesses of customers linked to the bars, including nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.

“After hearing from our customers, we immediately began investigating the cause of the issue and whether it was linked to a problem with the Bars,” the company said. “So far we have not yet identified one and this issue does not appear to affect our other drinks and powder. Though our investigation into this matter continues, we have decided to err on the side of caution and take this preventative step.”

Complaints came in directly to the company, as well as on a Soylent forum and several Reddit threads. Since Ars reported on the illnesses on Monday, the number of cases tallied on the Soylent forum jumped from 33 to 57. Those cases all reported illnesses involving gastrointestinal distress within a few hours of eating a bar that cleared up within a day or two. Many online speculated that a few batches contained a fraction of spoiled or contaminated bars. However, Soylent reported that microbiological tests on bars collected from sick customers all came back negative. Sources close to the company told Ars that Soylent was investigating whether soy protein products were causing intolerance issues for some customers.

In today’s blog, the company reiterated its commitment to get to the bottom of the issue, adding that it is “deeply sorry” to those that have become sick. It urges customers to report issues and will provide updates on the investigation as it develops.

On the Soylent forum, customer Raylingh, who helped track customer illness reports over the past month or so, wrote "I applaud them for doing this, in spite of any backlash that it may cause. Ultimately, no backlash is worse than having a handful of customers adversely reacting to your product. Every negative experience only serves to undermine trust."