The Hillshire Brands Company recalled approximately 58,000,000 pounds of corn dog and “sausage on a stick” products at the start of the weekend, fearing those foods may contain pieces of wood embedded in the batter.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced the recall Saturday. It pertained to food products packaged between March 17 and the day of the recall.
Tyson Foods, which owns Hillshire, specified in a statement over the weekend that State Fair Corn Dogs on a Stick and Jimmy Dean Pancakes & Sausage on a Stick items are the foods being recalled.
“A limited number of products have been found to include extraneous pieces of wooden stick within the batter portion of the products, and out of an abundance of caution, the company is voluntarily recalling this product,” the food company added.
Regulators said the possibly contaminated foods were sold online and shipped to retailers and vendors throughout the country as well as school districts and Department of Defense facilities.
The FSIS expressed concern that some products may be stored in refrigerators and freezers, and asked that individuals and institutions that serve Hillshire Brands’ corn and sausage foods check their inventory.
An issue was reportedly discovered as a result of several consumer complaints including five unspecified “injuries.”
Hillshire Brands found that wooden sticks at the center of the foods in question entered the production process “prior to product battering.”
Tyson Foods also lists Ball Park, Sara Lee and Bosco’s among the companies in its food family. Those brands weren’t impacted by Hillshire’s recall.
