Salad alarm triggers warning to customers in two states

Consumers are warned about possible undeclared allergens in prepackaged salad bowls.

A health alert posted Monday on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) website warns people with wheat or fish allergies not to use Ready Pac “Bistro Grande Southwestern Style” bowls sold in California and Nevada.

The warning was issued because some of the packages are mislabeled and actually contain Chicken Caesar Salad – which contains wheat and anchovy fish. FSIS said the product was not recalled from stores because it is no longer sold, although some consumers may still have the salad bowls at home.

“FSIS is issuing this public health alert to ensure that consumers with wheat and fish allergies know not to consume this product,” the alert states. “FSIS is concerned that some products may be in consumers’ refrigerators.”

“Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them,” it continues. “These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.”

The affected products are 11.75-ounce bowls of “Bistro Grande Southwestern Style With Chicken And Salsa Ranch Dressing,” which have a best-before date of June 12, 2024. The product label also includes the timestamp “08:59,” the lot code “217638176,” and the establishment number “P-27497.”

The warning said the manufacturer was unaware of the problem until a customer complained about the mislabeling. It was unclear how many salads were sold or consumed before the warning was issued.

Newsweek contacted the Bonduelle Group, which produces the salads under the Ready Pac label, by email on Monday evening for comment.

Customers with further questions are asked to contact Ready Pac Food, Inc. by phone at 800-800-7822 or by email at [email protected].

Foods that do not list ingredients such as wheat – which is unlikely to be of concern to most consumers – can trigger the sometimes fatal condition of anaphylaxis in people with corresponding allergies.

The presence of undeclared wheat in foods also poses a serious medical risk for people with celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder that is different from a wheat allergy, in which sufferers are hypersensitive to the gluten found in wheat and some other grains.

Although no illnesses have been reported in connection with the Ready-Pac salad warning at the time of publication, occasionally mislabeled foods cause tragic and preventable deaths due to severe allergic reactions.

Last year, northeastern Connecticut-based supermarket chain Stew Leonard’s recalled packages of its Florentine cookies after a woman died from eating the cookies without knowing they contained peanuts.

The victim was later identified as Órla Baxendale, a 25-year-old British national who had moved to New York to pursue a career as a “world-class” dancer, according to NBC New York.

“This is a heartbreaking tragedy that should never have happened,” Bryan T. Cafferelli, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection, said in a statement at the time. “Our condolences go out to the family affected by this incident.”