Kayem Foods has issued a voluntary recall of more than 1.5 million pounds of ready to eat meat and poultry products after regulators said some items may have been stored at unsafe temperatures.
The US Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service announced the recall and said the products were distributed to retail and food service locations nationwide.
The recalled selection spans dozens of items and brand names. Examples include hot dogs, deli meats, cocktail franks, corned beef, bacon and chicken sausage, along with bologna, kielbasa, bratwurst, beef brisket, ham, turkey breast and liverwurst.
Kayem Foods said it discovered a cooling system malfunction at one of its warehouses and voluntarily initiated the recall. Kayem Foods President and CEO Matt Monkiewicz said, "Out of an abundance of caution, we are undertaking this voluntary recall." He added, "We take food safety very seriously and apologize to our valued consumers."
The USDA urged consumers who have the affected products not to eat them and to throw them away or return them to the place of purchase. So far, officials reported no confirmed illnesses linked to the products.
Distribution Details And Company Background
The USDA said the affected ready to eat items may have experienced temperature abuse during storage. The agency warned some recalled products could remain in household refrigerators and food service inventories.
The USDA has published lists that include product UPCs and the mark of inspection establishment numbers EST. M/P 7839, EST. P 20935A and EST. M 9520, which can help consumers and retailers identify affected packages.
Kayem told reporters it corrected the warehouse cooling issue and said management accepts responsibility. Monkiewicz said the company has learned from the incident and will not allow it to recur.
Media outlets noted the recall covers products shipped across the country and that the USDA and Kayem products are sold under multiple brand names, including some regionally recognized items like Fenway Franks and Al Fresco chicken sausage.
Reporting also recalled a prior Kayem Food safety action in the recent past, when the company removed a smaller quantity of chicken sausage products for potential contamination concerns, highlighting past recall activity tied to product safety.
The USDA continues to provide the full list of affected items and UPCs for verification. Consumers with concerns are advised to consult the USDA recall notice or contact retailers for return or disposal guidance.
