Latest news with #NatureMills
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Rice Recalls That Affected Millions
We may receive a commission on purchases made from links. As it's a staple food and foundational grain for billions of people, and a primary ingredient in so many dishes across numerous culinary cultures, it's tough to underestimate the importance of rice. Whether it's white or brown, long grain or short grain, eaten on its own or with a traditional Indian, Chinese, Mexican, Japanese, Italian, or Spanish dish, to cite just a few examples, rice is a vital part of the global food chain and nutritional landscape. That makes it all the more frightening, concerning, and potentially disastrous when rice is beset by danger. So much of it is harvested, dried, processed, packaged, and distributed that it invites plenty of opportunities for adulteration or contamination. Rice can be ruined, and turned into a conduit for injury or even death, by the presence of food-borne illness-causing bacteria, harmful allergens, inedible materials, poison, and other factors. Here are all of the times that rice makers have had little choice but to issue a recall, attempting to bring back all the bad rice it put out into the world so as to limit the harm to huge populations it would otherwise unleash. Read more: Bologna Brands That Use The Highest Quality Ingredients And The Ones You Should Avoid NatureMills manufactures a number of rice-based, Indian and Indian-inspired packaged goods out of its main production facility in Texas. In addition to dried soup mixes, spice blends, porridges, and papads, many of NatureMills' products are rice-based mixes that combine dried rice with carefully selected spice blends. To get all the flavors right requires a host of ingredients, and during a self-audit, NatureMills representatives discovered that many of its products had been sent to market, sold, and consumed with common and potentially harmful allergens within, and that they hadn't been properly mentioned on the packaging. On May 13, 2025, NatureMills issued a recall through the FDA, covering seven rice mixes, four soups, two spice blends, a porridge mix, and three rice-derived papad and vadam mixtures. A total of 17 different products and 56 separate batch codes were involved in the recall, which had been sold as early as December 1, 2023, and as late as May 10, 2025. At that point, there hadn't been reported illnesses over customers accidentally ingesting ingredients to which they were allergic. All of those goods -- including sesame rice, dal garlic rice, curry leaf rice, horsegram rice, and chili rice -- may have contained remnants of wheat, milk, or sesame, and their presence hadn't been noted on the product, necessitating the recall. Wild rice isn't actually rice, biologically speaking, but it resembles and tastes like the real deal in so many ways that it's more or less interchangeable with the authentic stuff. Wehah Farms, parent company of Lundberg Family Farms, is a major distributor of wild rice blends, and in May 2024, it instituted a recall of one particular product that had been sold in as many as seven states. Lundberg Family Farms Sustainable Wild Blend Gourmet Rice is a combination of black, brown, red, and wild rice, as well as an extra, unintended ingredient in potentially 4,600 cases of the product. About 27,000 individual units of 16-ounce bags of the rice blend were ordered returned to the manufacturer. Under FDA guidelines, the Class II recall meant that negative health effects were potentially in order for anyone who ate the tainted product. At some point in production, inedible material, reported to be originating in rodents, made its way into the rice. No illnesses related to eating the Lundberg Family Farms Sustainable Wild Blend Gourmet Rice had been reported at the time of the recall, or in the weeks after. Potentially a red flag when grocery shopping at Target: Production of the big box retailer's relatively new Good and Gather grocery line is outsourced to numerous industrial food suppliers. Otis McAllister, for example, is responsible for Good and Gather Organic Jasmine Rice. In September 2023, Otis McAllister worked with the FDA to recall more than 2,900 cases of the jasmine rice, a quantity consisting of more than 17,400 individual, large-size 30-ounce pouches. The possibly tainted product had been sent to 27 Target distribution facilities on their way to retail outlets. An inspection had uncovered the presence of insects in a sample of the rice, specifically rice weevils. While that's not an immediate pathogen, it's still gross enough that a recall was required. That Otis McAllister recall was deemed over and settled by January 2024, but just two months later, the rice maker was already at work on another pull-back. In March 2024, the California-based company announced a recall of its Emerald River Premium Thai Jasmine Rice. Sold in grocery stores through Washington state, Texas, Utah, and Oregon, 2,700 bags of the bulk, 50-pound size of the product with an expiration date of September 2025 (135,000 pounds of product, in total) bore the possibility of containing a dangerous foreign object: tiny shards of broken glass. Trader Joe's shelves and freezers are stocked almost entirely with private label or store-branded edible merchandise. The small-supermarket chain contracts with many food manufacturers to produce its Trader Joe's-named products, including Mama Vicky's. In 2023 and 2024, Mama Vicky's was the real company behind Trader Joe's Chicken, Lentil, and Caramelized Onion Pilaf with Saffron Basmati Rice, Dark Chicken Meat, Dates, and Golden Raisins. The rice-based dish was sold in 14-ounce frozen packages, and designed to be a heat-and-eat product. In early 2024, customer service channels at Trader Joe's fielded numerous complaints from people claiming to have purchased the rice pilaf, with most saying they bit into something hard and inedible in the product. It turned out to be small rocks, and they were introduced into the rice blend somewhere in the Mama Vicky's production process. Trader Joe's notified the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Safety Inspection Service, which issued a public health notice over the Chicken, Lentil, and Caramelized Onion Pilaf. That's slightly different from a recall, because Trader Joe's had discontinued the item by the time of the February 2024 announcement. The FSIS instructed consumers to search their freezers for the rice and to discard it (eating it could lead to severe internal injury or dental problems) or to immediately return it to their Trader Joe's outlet. Whether it's the best risotto in Italy (according to Giada Laurentiis) or risotto made with the Wisconsin technique, the creamy and savory traditional dish often starts with arborio rice. That's what pre-made dinner kit company Factor uses when it sends out heat-and-eat risotto packs to its subscribers, and it was also the reason behind a July 2022 recall. Factor cited six different meals in its announcements: a vegan mushroom marsala with onion risotto, a sweet pea risotto, an onion and goat cheese risotto, a tomato and roasted vegetable risotto, a sweet corn risotto, and a shrimp and asparagus risotto. Factor was compelled to ask for its meals back -- nearly 149,000 units altogether (or over 133,000 pounds) -- after it got some bad news from its rice supplier. The arborio rice, provided by another entity, potentially accidentally left a facility studded with bits of glass. Signs point to the glass-contaminating arborio supplier being Woodland Foods. The Illinois-based rice distributor issued its own recall the same week as Factor's due to the possible presence of glass, asking for the return of more than 50,000 pounds overall of rice sold in 10 lot numbers in 25-pound bags under multiple brand names. Among the brands included in the recall: Woodland Ingredients, Sysco, and DGourmet. Per federal law, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires food producers to clearly and accurately warn consumers through package labeling if the food inside contains even a trace of any of the most common food-based allergens. Those ingredients include sesame, tree nuts, eggs, and dairy items. If someone with an allergy purchases and eats a product that unknowingly contains a medically forbidden ingredient, great sickness or even death could occur. When a company makes and distributes a food which they discover after the fact contains an allergen, and they didn't disclose that information on the box or bag, generally a recall goes into effect. This is precisely what happened in March 2019, with Choice Canning Company. The Pennsylvania packager discovered that between February 13 and February 19, 2019, it had produced two batches of Fusia Asian Inspirations Complete Skillet Meals, sold in 22 ounce bags. They'd been sent for sale in nine states, including California, Connecticut, Florida, New York, Texas, and Virginia, without correct labeling. Because milk had been used in the product without notation, Choice Canning recalled 35,459 pounds of chicken fried rice. Of that volume, just over 19,000 pounds was successfully recovered. Brooklyn company Feel Good Foods makes frozen-sold fried rice dinners, and in October 2018 it started a recall of its Vegetable Fried Rice. Made from brown rice, assorted vegetables, and ginger, the Vegetable Fried Rice was certified and labeled as a gluten-free product, but six lots of the item produced in 2018 were spiked with a different common food allergen: eggs. Sold in nine-ounce containers at as many as 400 stores across the United States, rice meals with expiration dates ranging from October 2019 to January 2020 were subject to the recall, or 415 cases in all. Feel Good Foods' Vegetable Fried Rice had been prepared with eggs at a facility, and then the allergen wasn't properly or fully removed from the finished product. With traces of eggs possibly in all those containers, none of the boxes announced that the food inside may contain egg, setting up allergic people for reaction, illness, or injury. No harmful effects were reported during the length of the recall, during which consumers were advised to return the Vegetable Fried Rice to the place of purchase. Texas-based Garland Ventures produces many brands of packaged foods, including An-Joy Asian Foods. One of that label's signature products is a 20-ounce cardboard pail that resembles a takeout container loaded with chicken fried rice, as well as peas, carrots, and soy sauce, fully cooked and intended for heat-and-serve purposes. In May 2016, Garland Ventures received word from Ajinomoto Windsor Inc., the supplier it contracts to provide the fried rice for the An-Joy meals, that the vegetables it had used fell under a recall conducted by CRF Frozen Foods. That third company had discovered in some of its shipped-out products listeria monocytogenes, the pathogen that can cause the food-borne infection known as listeriosis. Especially at risk are the elderly, the immune-compromised, babies, and pregnant women, and listeriosis presents as with fever, aches, disorientation, balance issues, convulsions, and gastrointestinal effects, and, in severe cases, death. Garland Ventures instituted its own recall of An-Joy Chicken Fried Rice, comprising 10 case codes that covered 114,870 pounds of product produced from September 2015 until March 2016, and distributed to facilities in Colorado, Georgia, Utah, and Missouri. No illness reports linked to An-Joy had been filed at the time of the recall, which netted a return of 20,590 pounds of fried rice, or less than 20% of the possibly tainted food. Sometimes food just tastes wrong, or it smells wrong, or doesn't look like it's supposed to look. There's often nothing intrinsically toxic or dangerous about foods that have seemingly turned in such a way, but they're so unpalatable that food companies would have such a hard time selling them, or don't want to sustain a hit to their brand's reputation, that they will go ahead and recall the questionable items. The Iberia Foods Corp. was more or less forced into such a situation in September 2014, when it received reports that its Yellow Rice Spanish Style product was giving off color and taste that differed from the norm. Chalking it up to a quality control issue, Iberia Foods recalled multiple lots of the dried and heavily seasoned rice, meant to be a pantry staple. The problem in one of the production lines may have been a slight change in recipe, with supplemental Vitamin B1 switched out in favor of Vitamin B2 in another. Beyond that, Iberia never provided the public, or federal food safety agencies, any information as to why so much of its rice had a strange and unappealing taste and look. Uncle Ben's rice has a new name: Ben's Original. But in late February 2014, under its original branding, umbrella company Mars Food U.S. recalled a large quantity of the brand's flagship convenience rices because of consistency issues with both the product and the packaging in which it was distributed to stores around the country. During an internal inspection, Mars employees noticed a significant number of 8.8-ounce boxes of Uncle Ben's Ready Rice Original Enriched Long Grain White Rice were riddled with holes. Those samples came from production lots that had already been shipped out to grocery and retail stores in 20 states, primarily in the U.S. southeast and Midwest. Determining that other boxes out of sight had also been punctured, and similarly leading to spoiled rice inside, a recall went out requesting the return of 3,329 cases of product, or roughly 40,000 boxes. No accounts of illnesses were reported during the time in which the recall was active, although the rice reportedly boasted both an incorrect appearance and smell. Almost simultaneously with the recall of 40,000 units of Ready Rice due to hole-laden boxes full of rice gone wrong, Uncle Ben's rice was subject to a second manufacturer return program, and for possibly much more serious and mysterious reasons. On February 6, 2014, Mars U.S. recalled 140,225 units total of Uncle Ben's Infused Rice Mexican Flavor. The company had received complaints from the public that after eating the seasoned rice, they experienced a mild flushing sensation, but which both appeared and disappeared in a matter of hours. Recalled were five-pound and 25-pound wholesale-intended permutations of the Uncle Ben's rice. Three days later, the recall expanded to include more products and sizes in the Uncle Ben's Infused line. Mars asked customers to return for refund five- and 25-pound containers of chicken, garlic and butter, pilaf, saffron, cheese, and Spanish varieties. Consumption of those products also led to flushing, and Mars believed a production issue was to blame, but it didn't disclose any other clarifying information. For more food and drink goodness, join The Takeout's newsletter. Get taste tests, food & drink news, deals from your favorite chains, recipes, cooking tips, and more! Read the original article on The Takeout.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Nature Mills Recalls Over a Dozen Products, FDA Reports
"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." The U.S. Food and Drug Administration alerted customers of a recall of more than a dozen Nature Mills US Inc. powder mixes. The company issued the recall after it discovered that several of its products contained undisclosed allergens, like milk, wheat, and sesame. Find a full list of impacted products below. Powdered flavor and soup mixes are an easy way to add some punch to an otherwise plain dish. However, some of the products manufactured by the Texas-based company Nature Mills US Inc. are being recalled due to undisclosed allergens, which pose a serious risk for those with certain allergies. The Nature Mills products were sold nationwide to customers who shopped on the brand's website and included a variety of products, like rice mixes, soups, spice mixes and powders, porridge mix, and papads and vadam. According to a statement shared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the recall came after a routine inspection revealed that the products contained undisclosed allergens, including wheat, milk, and sesame. These items were sold between Dec. 1, 2023 and May 10, 2025, and include some of the following product descriptions and UPC codes: Nature Mills Idly Chili Powder, UPC: 1 95993 07455 5 Nature Mills Sesame Rice Mix, UPC 689394708435 Nature Mills Dal Garlic Rice Mix, UPC 689394708428 Nature Mills Moringa Rice Mix, UPC 689394708442 Nature Mills Curry Leaf Rice Mix, UPC 689394708336 Nature Mills Avarampoo Soup, UPC 689394708374 Nature Mills Wonderberry Soup, UPC 195993074562 If you have food allergies and believe you have an impacted product, do not eat it. To get a complete list of the recalled items, including their UPC codes and best-by dates, visit the FDA website. While there is no risk to the general public, those who are allergic to the undeclared ingredients are directed to check their packages to see if they own any of the items included in the recall. Those customers are advised to discontinue using the items at once and contact the company for a full refund or replacement product. Nature Mills can be reached via email at info@ or by phone at 1-833-628-8736, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST. Fortunately, no illnesses have been reported as of the time of publication. However, those who are allergic to wheat, milk, and sesame are at an increased risk of experiencing a reaction to these items. For those with serious allergies, that reaction may be severe, and the Mayo Clinic says symptoms of an allergic reaction may include shortness of breath, itching or tingling in the mouth, hives, swelling of the face and throat, stomach pain and discomfort, and dizziness or lightheadedness that may lead to fainting. In more extreme cases, a person could experience anaphylaxis, which can be life-threatening. Call 911 to get immediate treatment. If you or someone you know is experiencing these symptoms after consuming these products, it's important to contact your healthcare provider immediately. You Might Also Like Can Apple Cider Vinegar Lead to Weight Loss? Bobbi Brown Shares Her Top Face-Transforming Makeup Tips for Women Over 50
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Nature Mills products are being recalled
MESA COUNTY, Colo. (KREX) – Mesa County Public Health announced a recall from Nature Mills involving rice mixes, soups and spices due to concerns about undeclared allergens, including wheat, milk and sesame. People with an allergy or severe sensitivity to the allergens run the risk of a serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they eat the products, according to MCPH. The items were distributed nationwide and may have been sold in Mesa County. The recalled products are: Nature Mills Idly Chilli Powder, 200g with UPC Code: 1 95993 07455 5. These products have the following best by dates: OCT-2025 JAN-2026 JUN-2026 AUG-2026 Nature Mills Sesame Rice Mix, 200g with UPC Code: 689394708435. These products have the following best by dates: OCT-2025 JAN-2026 JUN-2026 Nature Mills Avarampoo Soup, 100g, with UPC Code: 689394708374. These products have the following best by dates: OCT-2025 JAN-2026 JUN-2026 Nature Mills Traditional Sambar Powder, 200g with UPC Code: 689394708312. These products have the following best by dates: OCT-2025 JAN-2026 AUG-2026 JUN-2026 For more information, contact Nature Mills at info@ or 833-628-8736. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Metro
15-05-2025
- Health
- Metro
Urgent recall of soups, rice and porridge over 'life-threatening' risk in US
More than a dozen varieties of soup, rice and porridge mixes have been recalled in the US for containing three undeclared allergens. NatureMills US Inc is recalling 17 of its items sold nationwide because they contain wheat, milk and sesame, which were not listed in the labels. The company based in Prosper, Texas, announced on Tuesday that 'people who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to these allergens run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reactions if they consume these products'. NatureMills rice mixes under the recall include the Idly Chilli Powder, Sesame Rice Mix, Dal Garlic Rice Mix, Moringa Rice Mix, Curry Leaf Rice Mix, Vallarai Rice Mix and Horsegram Rice Mix. Its affected soups are the Wonderberry Leaf Soup, Moringa Leaf Soup, Avarampoo Soup and Horsegram Soup. Spice mixes and powders that are recalled include the Traditional Sambar Powder and the Traditional Rasam Powder. The company's Black Kavuni Porridge Mix, as well as its Garlic Vadam, Tomato Vadam and Rice Papad, are also recalled. More Trending NatureMills issued the recall after a routine audit found that the three ingredients were missing from the labels. 'The issue was the result of a oversight in the packaging process,' stated the notice from the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA), which is responsible for protecting public health across the nation. 'Immediate corrective measures have been implemented.' Consumers with allergies to the ingredients are advised to throw away the products and contact NatureMills for a replacement or full refund. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: History of Air Force One as Trump eyes accepting $400,000,000 Qatari plane MORE: Brain dead woman Adriana Smith forced to be kept alive due to draconian US law MORE: Trump's health secretary says people shouldn't take 'medical advice from me'
USA Today
15-05-2025
- Health
- USA Today
Rice, soup mixes recalled over concerns of undeclared allergens, NatureMills says
Several varieties of rice, soups and porridge mixes, among others, produced by the NatureMills brand have been recalled over concerns that they may contain undeclared allergens. The Food and Drug Administration Authority (FDA) announced May 13 that Texas-based NatureMills US Inc. is recalling select products, sold between Dec. 1, 2023, and May 10, 2025, due to undeclared allergens such as wheat, milk, and sesame. "People who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to these allergens run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reactions if they consume these products," the advisory said, adding "no illnesses have been reported to date in connection with this issue." The recall was initiated after a routine internal audit found missing labeling for ingredients and allergens, which stemmed from an oversight in the packing process, the company said. Which NatureMills products are included in the recall? See list The affected products, which were sold nationwide via the NatureMills website, include: Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle. Rice Mixes: Idly Chilli Powder, Sesame Rice Mix, Dal Garlic Rice Mix, Moringa Rice Mix, Curry Leaf Rice Mix, Vallarai Rice Mix, Horsegram Rice Mix Idly Chilli Powder, Sesame Rice Mix, Dal Garlic Rice Mix, Moringa Rice Mix, Curry Leaf Rice Mix, Vallarai Rice Mix, Horsegram Rice Mix Soups: Wonderberry Leaf Soup, Moringa Leaf Soup, Avarampoo Soup, Horsegram Soup Wonderberry Leaf Soup, Moringa Leaf Soup, Avarampoo Soup, Horsegram Soup Spice Mixes & Powders: Traditional Sambar Powder, Traditional Rasam Powder Traditional Sambar Powder, Traditional Rasam Powder Porridge Mix: Black Kavuni Porridge Mix Black Kavuni Porridge Mix Papads & Vadam: Garlic Vadam, Tomato Vadam, Rice Papad The embed below contains the UPC and batch codes of affected products, according to NatureMills: What should you do if you purchased the affected products? Consumers allergic to wheat, milk, or sesame are urged not to consume the affected products and should dispose them. They can contact NatureMills at info@ or 1-833-628-8736 between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. ET for a full refund or replacement. Customers can also visit for more information. Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@ and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.
