US food company recalls chicken strips over metal fears

Image caption Tyson produces a wide range of chicken products sold in supermarkets across the US
Millions of pounds of chicken strips have been recalled following concerns they might be contaminated with metal.

Tyson Foods, a US food processor, has recalled 11.8 million pounds (5.3m kg) of frozen chicken strips.

Six people have complained after finding pieces of metal in the products, with three suffering injuries to their mouths.

Tyson also recalled 36,000 pounds of chicken nuggets in January over rubber contamination fears.

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The ready-to-eat chicken strips have been distributed across the US. A much smaller batch was first recalled in March.

Image caption Employees preparing chicken at the Tyson factory
On Saturday, the US Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced an expansion of this recall.

According to NBC, it is categorised as a Class I recall, the most urgent, which states that “there is a reasonable probability that the use of the product will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death”.

The chicken strips in question have a use-by date of 1 October 2019 to 7 March 2020 and are also sold under other brand names, such as Food Lion, Best Choice and Great Value.

“Consumers expect that the food they eat is safe. In their best interest and in an abundance of caution we’re taking quick and decisive action to expand this recall,” said Barbara Masters from Tyson Foods.

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