Plastic contamination and glass shards spark food recalls

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Plastic pieces, glass shards and undeclared allergens all sparked recalls this past month (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

The threat of plastic contamination in chicken dippers and the possible presence of broken glass in luxury chocolates both sparked recalls by food firms in the past month.

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Red Hen 25 Chicken Dippers

Discount retailer Lidl and upmarket chocolatier Hotel Chocolat both pulled products off store shelves after it was discovered they may contain foreign objects.

Lidl GB has recalled Red Hen Battered 25 Chicken Dippers because they may contain pieces of hard blue plastic, making them unsafe to eat.

The recall applied 430g packs of the dippers with the batch code 30693400 and a best before date of End of February 2025. Customers were advised to not eat the product and instead return it to the store it was purchased from for a full refund.

Foreign contaminants

Hotel Chocolat also pulled products from shelves due to foreign contaminants, after small pieces of glass were discovered in some of its Choose Your Poison selection packs.

Notices were issued to all retail stores selling the product to inform consumers of the recall. Products affected by the recall carried the lot numbers 23205, 23206 and 23207 and a best before date of January 2024.

In a statement issued with the recall, Hotel Chocolat asked consumers who have purchased or collected the affected product online between 1 September and 26 September to return any remaining product/packaging or proof of purchase to their nearest Hotel Chocolat store where we will issue you with a full refund or exchange.

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Hotel Chocolat Choose Your Poison

“We’re very sorry that it has been necessary to recall this product and for the inconvenience and concern caused,” said a spokesman.

Undeclared allergens

A number of food and drink products have also been recalled this past month after it was discovered they contained undeclared allergens.

Uncleared milk and oats (gluten) forced Heathwick Ltd to pull Saugatuck Brewing co. Neapolitan Milk Stout and Blueberry & Maple Stout, while the presence of egg sparked the recall of Dunnes Stores’ Simply Better Italian Calabrian Salami & Sausage Pizza.

Bertie’s Bakery recalled Brioche Buns Pre-sliced because of undeclared Egg, while Asda recalled Asda Classic Boneless Chicken Dinner Joint because of undeclared wheat.

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