FSIS Issues Public Health Alert for Chicken Noodle Soup Products Due to Misbranding and an Undeclared Allergen

Mislabeling

WASHINGTON, May 2, 2020 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is issuing a public health alert because RCK Foods, a Kenosha, Wis. establishment, sold 34,200 pounds of ready-to-eat (RTE) chicken noodle soup products that were misbranded because they include ingredient labels meant for a different product. The product contains egg, a known allergen, which is not declared on the product label. A recall was not requested because it is believed that the affected products are no longer available for consumers to purchase. The RTE chicken noodle soup items were produced on March 11, 2020. The following product is subject to the public health alert: 15-oz. plastic cups containing “Fresh FOODS MARKET CLASSIC CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP” with a best by date 6/9/2020 and lot code 425798031120. The products subject to the public health alert bear establishment number “P-33997” inside the USDA mark of inspection. These items were shipped to Kroger retail locations nationwide. The problem was discovered by a retail store associate who found that an incorrect back label for potato soup was on the chicken noodle soup container and, therefore, did not list egg as an ingredient on the product label. There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about an illness should contact a health care provider. FSIS is concerned that some product may be in consumers’ refrigerators or freezers. Consumers who have purchased these products should be aware that they contain egg as an ingredient. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase. Members of the media with questions about the public health alert can contact Kristal Howard with Kroger, at 713-299-6383. Consumers with questions about the public health alert can contact Kroger Customer Connect, at 1-800-576-4377. Consumers with food safety questions can call the toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854) or live chat via Ask USDA from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Eastern Time) Monday through Friday. Consumers can also browse food safety messages at Ask USDA or send a question via email to MPHotline@usda.gov . For consumers that need to report a problem with a meat, poultry, or egg product, the online Electronic Consumer Complaint Monitoring System can be accessed 24 hours a day at https://foodcomplaint.fsis.usda.gov/eCCF/ .