If You Bought This Chicken, Throw It Out Now, USDA Says
If you frequently find yourself throwing away more of the food in your fridge than you end up cooking, buying prepared frozen foods can be a game-changer not only in terms of saving you time, but reducing your overall household food waste. Unfortunately, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) just announced the recall of five types of frozen chicken products due to the safety risk they present to customers and the authority's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is recommending that anyone who purchased the products throw them out immediately.
On August 9, the FSIS announced that Serenade Foods of Milford, Indiana had recalled approximately 59,251 pounds of raw, frozen, breaded, and pre-browned stuffed chicken products due to potential contamination with Salmonella Enteritidis. For most healthy individuals, salmonella infections mimic the symptoms of food poisoning, including abdominal pain, diarrhea, and fever, which typically begin within 72 hours of eating contaminated food, according to the FSIS. However, young children, older adults, and individuals with compromised immune systems may be more likely to suffer more severe symptoms of salmonella infections.
Related: Almost 3,000 Pounds of Beef Are Being Recalled Due to E. Coli
"FSIS has been working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and public health partners to investigate a multistate outbreak of 28 Salmonella Enteritidis illnesses in 8 states, with onset dates ranging from February 21 through June 28, 2021," the recall notice states.
The affected products, which were produced on February 24 and 25, 2021, include:
• 5-oz. individually plastic-wrapped packages of Dutch Farms Chicken With Broccoli & Cheese with lot code BR 1055 and Best If Used By date Feb. 24, 2023
• 5-oz. individually plastic-wrapped packages of Milford Valley Chicken With Broccoli & Cheese with lot code BR 1055 and Best If Used By date Feb. 24, 2023
• 10-oz. boxes of two individually plastic-wrapped packages of Milford Valley Chicken Cordon Bleu with lot code CB 1055 and Best If Used By date Feb. 24, 2021
• 5-oz. individually plastic-wrapped packages of Kirkwood Raw Stuffed Chicken, Broccoli & Cheese with lot code BR 1055 and Best If Used By date Feb. 24, 2023
• 5-oz. Individually plastic-wrapped packages of Kirkwood Raw Stuffed Chicken Cordon Bleu with lot code CB 1056 and Best If Used By date Feb. 25, 2023
The two Kirkwood products included in the recall were sold at Aldi stores, while the other products may have been available at multiple retailers.
All of the products can be identified by the establishment number P- 2375, which is printed inside the USDA mark of inspection on their packaging.
If you have the recalled products at home, don't eat them or you could risk becoming sick. Instead, either return them to the store from which you purchased them or throw them away. If you have eaten any of the recalled products and have since fallen ill, contact a healthcare professional. You can also contact Serenade Foods at (866) 873-7589 with questions.
If you want to protect yourself from illness in the future, check out Doing This With Pasta May Actually Make It Deadly, Science Says, and for more recall news sent straight to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter!
