A needle has been found in a strawberry container in a supermarket in New Zealand, the second incident to hit the country in recent months.

The strawberries were bought at a Fresh Choice supermarket over the weekend in Geraldine, a town on the South Island.

It is unclear whether the strawberries in the punnet was grown in New Zealand or imported from Australia.

The latest incident comes after a contamination crisis erupted in Australia which saw more than 100 reports of tampered boxes of strawberries.

A former strawberry farm supervisor accused of putting needles into the fruit in "spite or revenge" appeared in court in Australia in November.

Workers sort and pack strawberries at a strawberry farm. Credit: AP

The New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) said the person who found the needle in Geraldine was not harmed.

A ministry spokesman for MPI told Newshub: "The matter has been referred to the police who are leading the criminal investigation.

"At this stage, MPI does not have any reason to believe this is more widespread than the single discovery.

"However, as a precautionary measure the store has removed strawberries from shelves."

My Ut Trinh, 50, was the first person arrested and charged with seven counts of contamination of goods with intent to cause economic loss, and could face up to 10 years in jail if convicted.

It was alleged in court that My Ut Trinh's actions arose in retaliation to a workplace grievance, and she will appear in court in December.