Food and drink giant Nestlé is scrambling to recall batches of a beloved cookie dough following concerns some cartons may contain wood shavings.
The action was announced last week by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, saying the American branch of the Swiss company is voluntarily retracting the product.
Nestlé USA Announces Voluntary Recall of Limited Quantity of NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bar (16.5 Oz) Due to Potential Presence of Foreign Material https://t.co/Qiuo6yPrDD pic.twitter.com/byRJpXI1rV
— U.S. FDA Recalls (@FDArecalls) August 14, 2023
The FDA confirmed it hasn’t yet received any reports on deaths or illness, but added that the company, which reported sales of $52.8 billion for the first six months of the year, has decided to go ahead with the recall “out of an abundance of caution.”
It is not clear why the company believes wood shavings may be in its product, or how the fragments might have got there.
“We are working with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) on this voluntary recall and will cooperate with them fully,” Nestlé U.S.A said in a statement.
The batches being recalled include codes 311457531K and 311557534K with “best by” dates of 8/22/23 and 10/23/23, respectively.
The company advised consumers to return or request refunds from the store of purchase.
“The quality, safety and integrity of our products remain our number one priority. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this action represents to both our consumers and retail customers,” Nestlé said in a statement.
The company pointed Fortune to its press release when contacted for comment.
Product recall history
Nestlé’s latest product recall comes less than a year after a similar issue affecting its Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough With Fudge Filling last October.
Batches of the product, which was distributed in the U.S. and Puerto Rico and was manufactured between June and September, were possibly contaminated with plastic fragments.
At the time, Nestlé said a “small number of consumers” had contacted it to raise the issue.
Nestlé USA Announces Voluntary Recall of NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® STUFFED Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough with Fudge Filling Products Due to Potential Presence of Foreign Material https://t.co/zcd0B7XWnI pic.twitter.com/hT8dl25TSa
— U.S. FDA Recalls (@FDArecalls) October 18, 2022
The makers of Kit Kat and breakfast cereal Cheerios have also had instances of recalls in other parts of the world—including Aero hot chocolate products in the U.K. and infant baby formula in Canada.
Nestlé was not the only consumer giant to face recall headaches in the last year—the likes of Unilever have also done so in recent times.
Food recalls are also on the rise, with the number of units recalled by the FDA increasing by 700% from 2021 to 2022, according to a report by Sedgwick, a company that manages consumer claims.
