Lego collectors have a problem—specifically, a pasta problem.
Across the internet, Lego fans are documenting a strange phenomenon. A customer will order a box of Lego, open it up, and then discover that their plastic bricks have been replaced with noodles.
For example, in December 2025, one internet user said they purchased a box of Lego from Target. When they brought it home, they opened the box. They then discovered that, instead of their beloved toy, the cardboard was filled with conchiglie noodles.
She’s not the only one. Across Reddit and other social media, users have documented Lego boxes that are instead filled with dry pasta.
Now, it’s happened again. What’s going on?
What Happened To This Woman’s Lego?
In a slideshow with over 640,000 views, TikTok user Elise (@elise00250) shows the box for a Lego Tiny Plants set.
“Tell me why I just bought a £35 Lego set all sealed up literally not been touched, all the bags completely sealed and l go to open one of the bags and it’s full of pasta,” Elise writes in the text overlaying the video. This equates to around $48 USD.
“Lego has some explaining to do,” she adds.
The images in the slideshow show paper bags that appear to be sealed. The bags clearly contain conchiglie pasta.
In the comments section, Elise insists the bags have not been resealed. She adds that the Lego was purchased from British retailer B&M. Additionally, being gluten-free, she couldn’t even use the pasta.
Why Is There Pasta In Lego Boxes?
As previously reported by The Mary Sue, there’s no consensus as to why this is happening. That said, some internet users have theories.
The most common theory is “return fraud.” This is where someone buys the product, then replaces the contents with something of a similar weight in order to return it to the store for credit. From there, they can either use or sell the contents.
Some have speculated that this may be one of the reasons why it’s easy to find sealed packages of Lego without the box for sale online.
Elise insists the bags have not been resealed. However, someone who is experienced in this practice may have developed methods for doing so that are nearly undetectable. They could have steamed the bags open and resealed them. Alternatively, they could have printed their own bags that match the Lego bags, then used them to package up pasta.
Given the relatively high price of Lego and the low cost of pasta, it’s easy to see how even just a few successful attempts of this could net the scammer a major payday.
But why pasta? Again, no one is sure. Some say its low cost, paired with its similar weight and sound in the box, may make it the ideal candidate for a Lego swap.
Commenters Say It’s Common
In the comments section, users claimed that they had experienced something similar.
“The same thing happened to me last year lol couldnt believe it hahaha,” said a user. “But Amazon gave me a refund.”
“It happened the same thing to me , but i ordered it from a well known app,” recalled another. “But the problem is that i hadn’t opened it until 2 months later, so no refund and nothing just a very expensive bag of pasta.”
“I bought a mario lego that was $200 after taxes im victoria drove home about 1 and half hours and opened the lego it was a bunch of random lego bags that did not go with the set,” recalled a third. “I balled my eyes out I didnt want to order it off lego and wait I saw it and wanted it and I didnt get what I want i open all big legos in store after purchase so it doesn’t happen again.”
In a comment, Elise says she is currently pursuing a refund with the company.
The Mary Sue reached out to Elise via TikTok direct message and comment and B&M via email.
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