"According to a press release from food manufacturer TreeHouse Foods, Inc. the company is expanding its voluntary recall of hundreds of frozen waffle and pancake products—including Kodiak Cakes, Trader Joe’s, and Target Good & Gather brand frozen waffles—sold in the U.S. and Canada. The products are being recalled due to potential contamination of Listeria monocytogenes—an organism that can cause serious health complications. However, unlike the recent Boar’s Head deli meat recall, the company states there have been no confirmed cases of illness linked to the recalled products at this time. Rather, the contamination concern came after routine testing at the manufacturing facility.
So what does that mean for parents with these popular kid breakfast foods in their freezers? Keep reading for what to know about the ongoing pancake and frozen waffle recall.
Which Frozen Waffles Are Being Recalled?
According to the press release from TreeHouse Foods, Inc. the products were distributed in the United States and Canada and packed under various brands, including popular Kodiak Cakes, Target’s Good & Gather store brand, Publix, Walmart, and more.
Retailers will be pulling products from shelves and consumers can identify the UPC on the back of the carton, and the Lot Code and Best By Date for these products on the end of the carton and check it against this latest recall list on the company’s website. Additionally, the company provided photos of the list of frozen waffles and pancakes affected by the recall here. Popular Eggo frozen waffles are NOT affected by the recall.
What Should You Do If You Have the Recalled Waffes?
Consumers should check their freezers for any of the products listed above and dispose of them or return the recalled product to the place of purchase for credit. Consumers with questions may contact the company at 800-596-2903, Monday – Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. (CST).
Of course, anyone concerned about illness should contact their healthcare provider.
What is the Risk of a Listeria Infection?
Listeria infection is serious, but rare. According to the CDC, there are an estimated 1,600 people infected with Listeria each year in the United States. It can cause fatal infections in young children and those with compromised immune systems. It can also cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women. Healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.
Again, the company states that no one has gotten sick and this is a preventative measure carried out with the knowledge of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (U.S. FDA) and Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).
Kathy Sisson, Senior Editor
A mom of two, Kathy is passionately committed to sharing the honest, helpful—and often humorous—stories of motherhood, as she navigates her own everyday adventures of work, marriage, and parenting. She honed her creative and strategic skills at advertising agencies in Detroit and Chicago, before pivoting from marketing to editorial. Now instead of telling brand stories, she’s sharing her own, with articles published across popular parenting sites—including hundreds of stories on The Everymom.