Tyson Foods, one of the largest food production companies in the US, has issued a recall of more than 130,000 pounds of chicken nugget products. The urgency and scale of the product recall could be in anticipation of product liability lawsuits that would likely follow if consumers were to get sick as a result of eating the chicken nuggets.

The recalled products include five-pound bags of Tyson Fully Cooked Chicken Nuggets and 20-pound packages of Spare Time Fully Cooked Nuggets, Panko Chicken Nuggets, and Nugget Shaped Chicken Breast Pattie Fritters with Rib Meat. Grocers and other retailers in California and everywhere else in the United States have been told to remove the recalled chicken nugget products from store shelves and freezers.

The product recall was recently announced after the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) found that the Tyson Foods chicken nuggets were contaminated with plastic pieces during the production process. The FSIS conducted an inspection after consumers came forward with complaints about finding hard plastic in chicken nuggets they had purchased from grocery stores. What FSIS inspectors discovered was that the plastic pieces, which are reportedly 6.5mm in diameter and 21mm in length, had fallen off a rod on a transfer belt at the Tyson Foods production facility in Arkansas.

Compounding the contamination problem was the fact that Tyson Foods does not currently have machines capable of detecting plastic contamination in their food products. That’s reportedly why the contaminated chicken nugget products were able to evade detection and get past various safety checkpoints at the facility. (For instance, a metal detector did not catch the plastic contamination.)

At this time, there have not been any reports of illnesses or injuries being caused by the contaminated chicken nuggets. However, it is important to note that the USDA is classifying the product recall as a Class I recall. This means that there is a “reasonable probability” that consumption of the contaminated nuggets “will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death.” Anyone who has the recalled food products at home should immediately discard them or return them to the store for a full refund.

For more information, check out the International Business Times article, “Tyson Chicken Nuggets Recall 2016: Plastic Contaminated Product Shipped Nationally.”

If you or a loved one sustained injuries or suffered an illness as a result of consuming a food product, you need a qualified personal injury and product liability attorney on your side. At The Paris Firm, we can help. Contact The Paris Firm now to schedule a free initial consultation.