HOPEWELL VALLEY: Schools suspend cafeterias’ serving of chicken foods under recall  

Hopewell Valley Regional schools will discontinue use of certain chicken products identified by federal authorities as possibly contaminated.
In an e-mail to parents and staff and community, Superintendent Thomas A. Smith, Superintendent of Schools said cafeterias have immediately suspended use of GoldKist chicken products under a recall by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
“Today our food service provider, Pomptonian, informed us that their chicken provider, Pilgrim’s Pride, manufacturer of GoldKist chicken products, has issued a recall that involves product codes that are served in schools across New Jersey,” said Dr. Smith’s message.
“The recall was specific to certain products produced at one facility on specific dates and indicates that their breaded chicken product ‘may be contaminated with extraneous materials including wood, plastic, rubber and metal,’” he wrote.
The USDA’s news release said, “There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products.”
Dr. Smith said the school was “investigating if the product codes affected were served in Hopewell Valley; however, as a precaution, our cafeterias have immediately suspended use” of the products.
“While we are awaiting more information about this recall, we will continue to suspend use of the affected products and any product produced in the same plant,” he said.
On April 26, Pilgrim’s Pride Corp., a Waco, Texas, establishment, said it was recalling about 4,568,080 pounds of fully cooked chicken products that may be contaminated, said a release from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS.
The chicken products were produced on various dates between Aug. 21, 2014, to March 1, 2016. Products subject to recall are items like chicken nuggets, breaded chicken strips and chicken patties, in 20- and 30-pound boxes.
The USDA said the problem was first discovered after the firm received several consumer complaints regarding plastic contamination of the chicken nuggets. The firm notified FSIS of the issue on April 6. FSIS personnel identified more affected product types and dates of production after investigating additional consumer complaints.
Anyone concerned about an injury or illness should contact a healthcare provider, said the FSIS. 