Kayem Foods is voluntarily recalling 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 and the Food Safety and Inspection Service announced.
The affected inventory includes a wide range of products sold under multiple brand names. Items cited by regulators and the company include hot dogs, cocktail franks, deli meats, corned beef, bacon, chicken sausage and other ready to eat items. The USDA has published a full list of recalled products and their UPC codes.
Federal notices say the products were produced or handled during windows in the spring through autumn and were shipped to retail and food service locations nationwide. The USDA identified establishment numbers inside the mark of inspection on recalled packages as EST. M/P 7839, EST. P 20935A and EST. M 9520.
The recall followed the company’s discovery of a cooling system malfunction at one of its warehouses. Kayem Foods President and CEO Matt Monkiewicz said the company initiated a voluntary recall out of an abundance of caution and apologized to consumers. He said management takes full responsibility, has corrected the issue and will not allow it to recur.
Regulators and the company said there have been no confirmed reports of illness linked to the recalled items. The USDA warned that some products may remain in consumer refrigerators and urged anyone who has an affected item to throw it away or return it to the place of purchase.
Impact And Consumer Guidance
The USDA’s public list of affected items includes a range of SKUs and identifies brand examples such as Fenway Franks, bologna, kielbasa, bratwurst, beef brisket, ham, turkey breast, liverwurst and other cured and cooked meats. Retailers and food service buyers received shipments from the affected lot ranges. Consumers can check packaging for the listed establishment numbers and refer to the USDA list for UPC verification.
The company said the decision to recall was voluntary after the storage issue was found. Kayem has previously conducted smaller recalls for product contamination concerns, and regulators said the inspection mark and UPC guidance should help consumers identify recalled packages. Officials continue to monitor the situation and advise disposal or return of any product that matches the published recall list.
