In the middle of the season when people are looking to have the necessary inputs to prepare a good hot soup, just when winter storms have begun to appear that seem to cause large amounts of snow for the coming weeks, Walmart is in trouble because one of the ingredients of its own brand, Great Value, which traditionally generates immunity is under scrutiny
While many people are stocking up on soups to help ward off the cold, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued an alert warning that their popular chicken broth may not be fit for consumption.
The alert, issued on January 8, forced the retailer to recall 12,000 units of its Great Value chicken soup in 48-ounce containers. The affected products were packed in aseptic cartons, with six units per carton. In total, 2,023 cartons were recalled, totaling 12,138 cartons of granulated broth.
Why did Walmart recall 12,000 boxes of its Great Value brand food?
The reason was that packaging issues were discovered that could compromise the safety and sterility of the product. According to the FDA, the problem is the “possibility of packaging failures that could compromise the sterility of the product, leading to spoilage”.
This recall affected Walmart customers in the states of Alabama and Arkansas, where the FDA warned that customers can check the following product details to verify their home inventory and that they do not have any contaminated pieces:
- Batch code: 98F09234
- Retail UPC: 007874206684
- UPC: 078742066844
- Produced by TREE HOUSE FOODS INC, a company based in Oak Brook, British Columbia (Canada)
The items have an expiration date of March 25, 2026, so buyers could have contaminated products in their pantries, but with a long shelf life
The latest update from the FDA indicated that this report has not generated any risk classification or any report of illness associated with the recall, which began on December 11, 2024.
However, the country’s health administration noted that consuming spoiled chicken broth can cause symptoms of food poisoning due to the growth of harmful bacteria. This can lead to mild to severe gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea, vomiting and fever.
In the case of bacterial spoilage, it is unlikely that there will be any change in the taste, smell or appearance of the food. Therefore, it is best to discard them or return them to the place where they were purchased.
Walmart’s policy is to issue a cash refund for recalled products, regardless of the condition of the purchase.