What’s supposed to be in chicken nuggets? Pretty much just chicken, yet pieces of plastic or other foreign substances turn up in nuggets with frightening frequency. This time, it happened at chicken giant Tyson Foods, and the affected product was the panko-breaded nuggets that come in 5-pound bags from the frozen food department at Costco.

The chicken products would have been produced on July 18, 2016, and have a “best if used by” date on the package of July 18, 2017. The case codes on affected products are 2006SDL03 and 2006SDL33.

Chicken patties that were sold wholesale, probably to food service establishments, were also part of the recall, but those weren’t sold to consumers.

If you have the products, you should throw them away and not eat them unless you really enjoy plastic pieces, but remove the UPC and date code from the bag and mail them to Tyson for a refund. You can also bring them back to Costco for a refund.

The address to send the label to Tyson is:

Tyson Foods – CP631
P.O. Box 2020
Springdale, AR 72765-9989

If you have any questions about the products or about the recall, contact the company at 866-328-3156, or email comments@tyson.com.

What’s the problem with these products? The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that the company received reports of plastic pieces in chicken nuggets. These pieces were about 21 millimeters by 6 millimeters, or about .8 inches by .25 inches.

The USDA notes that the plastic pieces “may have come from a round, hard plastic rod used to connect a plastic transfer belt,” and wouldn’t have tripped the metal detectors that nuggets pass through before they ship.

Since these nuggets came from a warehouse club, Costco, in theory the club should contact members who purchased them. This is usually also the case for products purchased at regular grocery stores using a loyalty card.

If any people working in food production have any ideas about where the plastic pieces come from, our tipline is open.

Tyson Foods Inc. Recalls Chicken Nugget Products Due To Possible Foreign Matter Contamination [USDA]

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