Late last week, Foster Poultry Farms recalled 220,450 pounds of fully cooked frozen chicken nuggets. The Farmerville, Louisiana company’s recall comes a little more than two years after it had to recall an undetermined amount of chicken products due to contamination with Salmonella Heidelberg.
This time, Foster Farms’ problem doesn’t center around a bacterial outbreak -instead, the company is recalling the nuggets due to the potential that they may be contaminated with blue plastic and black rubber materials.
Despite the fact that this recall isn’t a true “outbreak,” it calls into question how much the company has learned from the bacterial outbreaks it experienced a short time ago.
Massive Recall of Foster Farms Chicken in 2014
634 people fell ill with Salmonella Heidelberg between March 1, 2013 and July 11, 2014. Cases were reported in 29 different states, as well as Puerto Rico, though the majority – 77% – of cases were reported from California.
The outbreak strains involved in the massive Salmonella Heidelberg outbreak were resistant to many commonly prescribed antibiotics. This is an ongoing concern for public health officials, as antibiotic resistance can be associated with increased risk of hospitalization in infected individuals.
Warning Signs – Foster Poultry Farms 2013 Recall
Last week’s news comes less than three years after Foster Farms’ products were responsible for an outbreak of Salmonella that sickened 134 people across 13 states.
Of the 134 people who fell ill in that outbreak, 31% were hospitalized. The majority of those illnesses were reported in Oregon and Washington.
Despite the warning signs, the 2014 outbreak proves that not enough was done to correct the extensive number of health violations occurring at the plant, which were later documented in in-depth government investigations.
The Current Recall
The recall announced on Friday regarding chicken with blue or black rubber in it concerns the following two products that were produced on Feb. 22, 2016 and March 8, 2016:
- 5-lb. bags containing FOSTER FARMS “Breast Nuggets – Nugget Shaped Breaded Chicken Breast Patties with Rib Meat.” The bags exhibit best by dates of 2/21/17 and 3/8/17.
- 10-lb. bulk boxes containing FOSTER FARMS “Fully Cooked Breast Nuggets – Nugget Shaped Chicken Breast Patties with Rib Meat Fritters.” The boxes contain package code 6053 and 6068.
The recalled items were shipped to distributors in Alaska, Arizona, California, Utah, and Washington state.
Foster Farms Claims: It’s Not Too Late
Many people who call our firm ask if it is “too late” to file a claim against a company who produced food that made them ill. In this case, if you contracted Salmonella in 2014 and suspect that it could have been a result of eating Foster Farms chicken, it’s not too late, but you have to act fast. State governments impose a “statute of limitations” on cases where people have been injured. This means that people who were victims of the 2014 outbreak still have about two months to act. If you think you may have been a victim of this outbreak, please call us or submit an online contact form for a free case evaluation – our number is below.
