Whey Powder Is the Source of Ritz Crackers, Goldfish and More Recalls—Here’s What You Need to Know
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has identified a whey powder produced by Associated Milk Producers as the common ingredient in a variety of food products currently being recalled due to a possible Salmonella contamination.
Earlier this week Mondelēz Global LLC, the company that produces Ritz Crackers, pulled 16 products—including Ritz Cheese Cracker Sandwiches and Ritz Bitz Cheese—from store shelves. Pepperidge Farm followed by recalling four varieties of Goldfish crackers; Flower Foods issued a voluntary recall on Swiss Rolls sold under the brand names Mrs. Freshley’s, Food Lion, H-E-B, Baker’s Treat, Market Square, and Great Value, and Captain John Derst’s Old Fashioned Bread; and the frozen dinner Hungry Man Chipotle BBQ Sauced Boneless Chicken Wyngz is also being recalled as a result of the dry powder.
“We recommend people discard or return any recalled product to the store where it was purchased,” the government agency said in a statement.
The dairy company that manufactures the whey product, which is not sold direct to consumer but is defined as a “valued ingredient for dairy, bakery, confectionery, snack and other food products, and animal feed” on their website, announced on Tuesday that they are recalling all 50-pound and 25-kg bags of the powder that were produced at their Blair, Wisconsin plant during certain periods of May and June.
The bags that were shipped out to manufacturers in that time tested negative for Salmonella, but because “additional product tested positive for Salmonella under AMPI’s routine test and hold procedures, the company is recalling product as a precautionary measure,” a spokesperson for AMPI told PEOPLE in a statement.
The company contacted all organizations which may have used the ingredient in their products, but would not release the list of affected companies to PEOPLE. The FDA warned that more foods could soon be recalled.
“As there are likely other food products made by other manufacturers that also use this common ingredient, there may be other recalls initiated in the coming days,” they said.
Salmonella can cause diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after infection, though symptoms normally subside without treatment after up to a week. However, young children, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems are at a higher risk of a serious infection, according to the CDC.
No illnesses related to the products have been reported thus far, the recalls are purely “out of an abundance of caution,” said the FDA.
See the full list of recalled foods below:
- Goldfish Flavor Blasted Xtra Cheddar
- Goldfish Flavor Blasted Sour Cream & Onion
- Goldfish Baked with Whole Grain Xtra Cheddar
- Goldfish Mix Xtra Cheddar + Pretzel
- Mrs. Freshley’s Swiss Rolls
- Food Lion Swiss Rolls
- H-E-B Swiss Rolls
- Baker’s Treat Swiss Rolls
- Market Square Swiss Rolls
- Great Value Swiss Rolls
- Captain John Derst’s Old Fashioned Bread
- Ritz Bits Cheese
- Ritz Cheese Cracker Sandwiches
- Ritz Bacon Cracker Sandwiches with Cheese
- Ritz Whole Wheat Cracker Sandwiches with White Cheddar Cheese
- Ritz Everything Cracker Sandwiches with Cream Cheese
- Mixed Cookie Cracker Variety 20 Pack
- Hungry Man Chipotle Bbq Sauced Boneless Chicken Wyngz