Springdale, Arkansas – May 4, 2019 – Tyson Foods, Inc., has decided to expand a voluntary recall originally issued on March 21, 2019 of frozen, ready-to-eat chicken strip products made at one location between October 1, 2018 and March 8, 2019. In recent days additional consumers reported finding fragments of metal in a small number of products. The company is expanding the recall in the interest of public health even though the vast majority of the products have already been consumed without any reported incidents.

“Consumers expect that the food they eat is safe. In their best interest and in an abundance of caution we’re taking quick and decisive action to expand this recall,” said Barbara Masters, DVM, vice president of regulatory food policy, food and agriculture for Tyson Foods. “Our company is taking corrective action at the location that makes these products. We have discontinued use of the specific equipment believed to be associated with the metal fragments, and we will be installing metal-detecting X-ray machinery to replace the plant’s existing metal-detection system. We will also be using a third-party video auditing system for metal-detection verification.”   

“Safety is at the core of everything we do. We’re committed to producing safe, healthy food that our consumers and customers can rely on every day,” Masters said. “It is unacceptable to Tyson Foods that any product might not meet our standards. Because of these additional consumer reports, we’ve decided to take this precautionary step to make sure that we’re meeting our own expectations and the expectation of consumers.”

Products Included in this Recall
This expanded recall includes Tyson® branded products as well as private label products made for customers. These products were sold to retailers and some foodservice wholesalers and distributed nationwide and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These products were produced at one plant location. Each package bears the establishment code P7221 and a “use by” date of October 1, 2019 to March 7, 2020. A comprehensive list of products and the product labels included in this recall are available for download. 

Consumers who have purchased any of the affected items should cut the UPC and date code from the packaging, discard the product and call 1-866-886-8456.

A comprehensive list of retail stores that subsequently received the product will eventually be posted on USDA’s website. Use the following link to locate the “retail distribution list.” http://www.fsis.usda.gov/FSIS_Recalls/Open_Federal_Cases/index.asp

Consumers with questions should call the special toll-free line at 1-866-886-8456. Customer service representatives will be available Monday through Friday 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. CDT. News media and health department officials who have questions should contact Worth Sparkman at 479-290-6358 or worth.sparkman@tyson.com.

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