Honey Smacks cereal fans, beware.
The cereal’s manufacturer, Kellogg’s, is voluntarily recalling the cereal after the CDC linked it to an outbreak of salmonella.
According to the CDC, the outbreak has affected 73 people across 31 states so far. People began reporting illness in early March and it continued through May 28, with 24 hospitalized so far. No deaths have been reported to date.
The CDC said that the majority of the outbreaks have taken place in California, Massachusetts, New York, and Pennsylvania. Nevertheless, the recalled products were distributed across the U.S., as well as in Costa Rica, Guatemala, the Caribbean, and Tahiti.
Kellogg’s is recalling boxes with the “best if used by” date of June 14, 2018 through June 14, 2019 of both the 15.3 ounce and 23 ounce packages of the cereal. In addition to the date, the potentially contaminated boxes can be identified by their UPC codes: 38000 39103 for the 15.3 ounce boxes, and 38000 14810 for the 23 ounce boxes. The UPC codes can be found on the bottom of the box.
If you have recently consumed Honey Smacks cereal that you fear could be contaminated, salmonella can be identified by symptoms of fever, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. The symptoms usually begin 12 to 72 hours after exposure to the bacteria. In most cases, people recover within a week.
Even if you have not fallen ill after eating Honey Smacks cereal, the CDC recommends you discard or return any boxes that could have been contaminated.