Health Alert Issued for Frozen Chicken Tenders Over Plastic Dye Concerns

A public health alert has been issued on Wednesday for Perdue's frozen ready-to-eat chicken breast gluten-free tenders for possibly containing small pieces of clear plastic and blue dye.

The Food Safety and Inspection Services (FSIS) in the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in the alert notice that a recall for the frozen chicken tenders was not made because the product is no longer available for purchase.

The FSIS said that the product in question containing "extraneous materials" was produced on July 12 under the label description "42 oz. plastic bags containing "PERDUE CHICKEN BREAST TENDERS GLUTEN FREE" with a "Best if Used By: 07 12 23" and a lot number of 2193 above the use by date."

"These items were shipped to BJ's Wholesale Club retail locations nationwide. The problem was discovered when the establishment reported to FSIS that it received a complaint from a consumer reporting a chicken tender had a small piece of clear plastic and blue dye inside it," the FSIS said.

No confirmed reports of "adverse reactions" were made in association with the consumption of these products, but the agency recommends contacting a healthcare provider in case of concerns about illness.

"FSIS is concerned that some product may be in consumers' freezers. Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase," the agency added.

Meanwhile, Perdue Foods LLC said on its website that it voluntarily withdrew those chicken tenders "because a foreign material was identified in a minimal amount of consumer packages."

"The withdrawn product was distributed exclusively through BJ's club stores. There have been no reports of injury or illness associated with this product," the company added.

In a press release, Perdue urged those who bought the products not to consume them.

"We determined the source of the material to be blue ink and a small piece of plastic from an ink pen cartridge that was inadvertently introduced into the raw material before the tenders were breaded," said Jeff Shaw, senior vice president of food safety and quality for Perdue, in the company's press release. "This likely resulted in a few packages that potentially contain the substance; however, out of an abundance of caution, we decided to voluntarily withdraw all packages of tenders produced on the day of the incident."

Perdue Foods LLC was among the list of poultry companies in the country involved in a $181 million class action antitrust lawsuit last year that alleged that those companies and "their co-conspirators conspired to restrict the supply of, and fix, raise, and stabilize the price of chicken, as of January 1, 2009, in violation of federal and state consumer and antitrust laws."

Those who bought a chicken product in the U.S. between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2020, may be eligible to claim payment as per the lawsuit.

Earlier this month, Home Run Inn Frozen Foods, which is based in Illinois, recalled over 13,000 pounds of frozen pizza because it could be contaminated with "extraneous materials," specifically metal. The recalled products were produced on June 6, 2022, and have a best-by date of December 3, 2022.

Newsweek reached out to Perdue for additional information and comment.

Update 8/24/2022, 4:11 p.m. ET: This article has been updated to include additional information.