Andouille Sausage Recall: San Giuseppe Sausage Found to Contain Pieces of Metal
San Giuseppe, of North Carolina, is recalling nearly 900 pounds of their pork sausage as at least one consumer discovered metal in this product. The Andouille Sausage, which comes fully cooked and ready to consume, bears the package description ‘Smoke Flavoring Added,’ and is produced by San Giuseppe Company, by Giacomo. The individual, vacuum sealed packages shipped to stores and ‘institutions’ – typically, facilities where food is served to groups such as schools, hospitals, jails or military bases. The packages vary in their weight but all share the expiry date of November 10, 2019. Due to the shelf-life remaining with this product, the concern is that purchasers will continue to prepare and consume this packaged food for months to come. The concern remains high and the USDA categorizes this recall as ‘Class 1’ wherein the risk is seen as possibly detrimental. There is a possibility of injury or death from consumption of this product should it contain the hazardous metal pieces.
According to the Food Safety and Inspection Service, an agency of the USDA, the single consumer reporting the presence of the unwanted ingredient in the Andouille Sausage identifies the foreign object as part of a metal ring. There have been no additional consumer reports and thankfully, no injuries reported. The risk however, remains high. Biting in to metal objects in food can result in injury to teeth and other oral injuries. Ingesting unexpected metal objects in food can also result in injury to the throat and GI tract including perforations requiring surgical intervention, infection, choking and even death.
Merchants having ordered these ready-to-eat, smoked Andouille Sausages, are asked to look for packages marked with the ‘establishment number,’ EST 21556 inside the USDA ‘mark of inspection’. This mark, and the expiration date, along with product description and label photographs are being broadcast, through multiple outlets, as a high alert in hopes of mitigating any further risk. Consumers are warned to not eat or serve this product but rather clean out freezers and dispose of all packages. Alternatively, return product to distributor or retail location where purchased for a refund. The risk of injury from consumption is too great to ignore.
