If You Have This Snack Food at Home, Throw It Away, USDA Says
When you’re deciding what to snack on, your choices are likely primarily dictated by how hungry you are, your particular tastes, and what’s on hand in your fridge or at your local store. However, you might want to add new criteria to that list: whether or not experts are telling you to avoid a particular food to protect your health. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has just announced a public health alert for a popular snack food—read on to discover if you should be purging this product from your kitchen now.
A health alert has been issued for two popular snack products.
On Sept. 10, the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) issued a public health alert for two snack food products.
The products included in the alert are 3-oz. plastic packages of Italian Recipe Snack Tray Genoa Salami, Provolone Cheese & Breadsticks with a sell by date of 12/30/2021 and lot number 897 and 3-oz. plastic packages of Italian Recipe Snack Tray Prosciutto, Provolone Cheese & Breadsticks with a sell by date of 12/30/2021 and lot number 897. Both products are marked with establishment number EST 54.
The products may contain items that have been recalled.
The public health alert was issued after it was discovered that the snack trays may contain breadsticks from Jag Specialty Foods that have been recently recalled.
The affected snack trays were sold in North Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas.
The recalled foods contain major allergens not disclosed on their packaging.
The breadsticks from Jag Specialty Foods were recalled due to the discovery that the products may contain sesame seeds but may be packaged in containers that do not disclose this information.
Sesame is one of the most common food allergens in the U.S. and must be labeled on packaged foods regulated by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA). Individuals with sesame allergies or sensitivities who consume the snack trays may become ill as a result. At the time the public health alert was issued, there had been no reports of illness or other adverse effects related to the consumption of the affected foods.
If you have the snack trays at home, don’t eat them.
If you purchased either of the snack trays subject to the public health alert, don’t eat them.
The FSIS recommends that anyone in possession of these foods either throw them away or return them to the store from which they were purchased. If you have eaten these products and are experiencing symptoms, contact a healthcare provider.
