FDA Recalls Popular Potato Chips

A recall involving hundreds of thousands of bags of popular Zapp's and Dirty brand potato chips has been classified under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's most serious warning level due to the risk of salmonella contamination.

The FDA classified the voluntary recall as a Class I recall, its highest risk category, on 1 July. According to the agency, a Class I recall means there is "a reasonable probability" that consuming or being exposed to the affected product could cause serious adverse health consequences or death..

The chips were first recalled in May by Utz Quality Foods, a subsidiary of Utz Brands, after the company learned that a seasoning made with dry milk powder supplied by a third-party manufacturer could potentially contain salmonella. Though the affected seasoning batches tested negative before being used, Utz said it issued the recall out of an abundance of caution..

The company has said it has received no reports of illnesses linked to the recalled products..

Consumers who have the affected chips should not eat them and should throw them away. Retailers have also been instructed to remove the products from store shelves..

According to Utz, the recalled products contain seasoning made with dry milk powder sourced from California Dairies, which may have been contaminated with salmonella. The recall is part of a broader investigation that has also led to recalls of other food products containing the same ingredient.