Sanderson Farms Recall: Poultry Producer Voluntarily Recalls Half-Million Pounds Of Chicken Over Possible Contamination


Sanderson Farms, the third-largest poultry producer in the U.S., is voluntarily recalling half a million pounds of frozen chicken over concerns about possible contamination by metal shavings, Yahoo Finance is reporting.

The recall involves 551,090 pounds of frozen chicken meat that were produced at the company’s Hazelhurst, Mississippi, factory on September 17 and 18.

In a statement made available via the Birmingham News, Sanderson Farms noted that the recalled chicken has not made it to any consumers’ homes, and so customers who have purchased Sanderson Farms chicken products recently need not be worried.

“A sample of the products analyzed by a customer of the Company and the USDA was found to contain foreign material. As a precautionary measure, the Company has voluntarily recalled approximately 551,090 pounds of product. None of the products that are the subject of this recall were shipped to grocery stores or packed directly for consumers. The product included ice packed chicken products sold to three customers who use the products for additional processing into further processed chicken products. The Company has identified all of the products and notified its customers to place the products on hold, return them to the Company and further execute the recall of these products. The Company is aware of no injuries or adverse reaction caused as a result of consuming this product.”

The recalled chicken was sent to processing facilities in Georgia and Louisiana.

The Sanderson Farms recall is the latest high-profile recall of frozen food products in the U.S. Earlier this month, Johnsonville — a producer of pork products — recalled some 89,000 pounds of meat, also due to contamination with metal pieces, according to this Inquisitr report. Unlike the Sanderson Farms recall, however, products involved in the Johnsonville recall actually did make it to consumers’ homes. Fortunately, however, there were no injuries or illnesses associated with the recalled products.

According to the company’s website, Sanderson Farms is the third-largest poultry producer in the United States (behind Tyson Foods and Pilgrim’s Pride).

“[Sanderson Farms employs] more than 11,000 employees in operations spanning five states and 13 different cities. Today, Sanderson Farms® is one of the nation’s leading food corporations, with annual sales of more than $2.77 billion and a weekly processing capacity of 9.375 million chickens. By relying on organic growth rather than acquisition, Sanderson Farms has positioned itself as a leader in its industry and has been the only company to build new poultry complexes since 1997. With its company headquarters in Laurel, Mississippi, Sanderson Farms is the only Fortune 1000 company headquartered in the state of Mississippi.”

[Image courtesy of Shutterstock/Kamila i Wojtek Cyganek]

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