Ukrop’s Homestyle Foods is recalling roughly 22,880 pounds of spaghetti and chicken cobbler products because they may contain metal fragments, according to the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS).
The recall is applicable to four products: 62.4 oz “Ukrop’s Baked Spaghetti-Bulk,” 14.8 oz “Ukrop’s Baked Spaghetti,” 48 oz “Ukrop’s Chicken Cobbler-Bulk,” and 11.6 oz “Ukrop’s Chicken Cobbler,” FSIS said in a July 31 announcement.
All four products were manufactured by Virginia-based Ukrop’s between July 1 and 29, and have “Best By” dates of July 8 through Aug. 5, FSIS said. The items were shipped to retail outlets in Virginia, West Virginia, and North Carolina, as well as to the Department of War. They were also sold online.
The recall has been classified with a High-Class 1 designation, which is issued “where there is a reasonable probability that the use of the product will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death,” FSIS said.
According to the agency, the problem of metal contamination was identified when Ukrop’s received a consumer complaint about a metal piece found in a package.
So far, there have been no confirmed reports of injuries from consuming the recalled items. FSIS advised people who have eaten the food and are concerned about an injury to contact a health care provider.
The agency said it was concerned some of the products may still be in consumers’ refrigerators or freezers. It advised people not to consume the recalled products. The items can be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.
The Epoch Times reached out to Ukrop’s for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.
In a July 30 media alert, Ukrop’s said that a small sliver of aluminum was discovered in the baking pan used to prepare the products during a routine review conducted by the company. A similar metal fragment was also found in a chicken cobbler product.
Ukrop’s has decided to recall products prepared in similar baking pans “out of an abundance of caution,” according to the company.
In addition to the four products listed by FSIS, the company mentioned two more items subject to recall—Bread Pudding with Vanilla Sauce and Bread Pudding with Vanilla Sauce-KIT.
The company clarified that no other products have been impacted by the recall.
“The baking pan supplier has been notified and has initiated actions to remove all potentially affected pan lots from distribution,” Ukrop’s said.
“Some foreign materials will inevitably evade the various removal methods and will make their way into the finished product. It is important to detect these contaminants before they leave the processing plant,” the study said.
Magnets can remove ferrous metal objects as small as dust from food items during manufacturing. Ultrasound, metal detectors, hyperspectral imaging, and X-rays are other methods for detecting metal contaminants in food.
In a May 7 post, measuring and control instrument manufacturer Mettler Toledo said that while detection systems such as X-rays and metal detectors are crucial tools for identifying foreign matter contaminants in food, their effectiveness will depend on a comprehensive understanding of factors such as strategic system placement and contamination risks.
When selecting a detector, manufacturers must consider the properties of the items they produce. For instance, potato chips may need to be vertically inspected before packaging.
For manufacturers concerned only about metal contaminants, metal detectors are a great choice. To detect a wider range of foreign matter, such as plastic or bones, X-rays should be considered, according to the post.
