Largest Producer in US Recalls 4.5 Million Pounds of Chicken

The US Department of Agriculture recently issued a recall notice of more than 4.5 million pounds of chicken produced by Pilgrim’s Pride due to possible contamination with materials such as wood, rubber, plastic, and metal. This recall is an expansion to an April 7 recall of 40,780 pounds of chicken products. The current recall spans chicken items—mostly “nuggets”—produced between August 21, 2014 and March 1, 2016 and is classified as Class I health hazard that, according to the USDA, means “there is a reasonable probability that the use of the product will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death.” Millions of pounds of animal products are recalled every year due to health and safety concerns such as salmonella, E. Coli, listeria, and in this case, foreign matter contamination.