Two popular snacks by Frito Lay Canada have been recalled due to a possible risk of salmonella contamination.
The recalled products include Sunchips Harvest Cheddar Flavoured Multigrain Snacks, as well as Munchies Original Snack Mix.
“You have to destroy all that merchandise, all that product and that’s a lot of chips and so, it probably will cost PepsiCo hundreds of thousands of dollars, if not, they could go into the millions,” said Dalhousie Agri-Food Analytics lab director Sylvain Charlebois.
A statement from Frito Lay Monday says the decision to recall the products was made after the seasoning supplier informed them that an ingredient added to it by a third party was potentially contaminated with salmonella.
Frito Lay says, although no salmonella has been found in any of the seasoning, it’s still going ahead with the recall out of an abundance of caution.
“It’s not necessarily out of the ordinary. You’re seeing more and more recalls like that. Manufacturers are not taking a chance even though there hasn’t been any reported hospitalization or anybody gotten sick,” added Charlebois.
Some fans of the snacks who spoke to CTV News Tuesday were disappointed with the recall.
“It brings great sadness to my life, really,” said Quinn LeBlanc. “I grew up eating Sunchips every birthday…It kind of scares me a little.”
“It’s not great because my family eats Sunchips and when we’re going to my friend’s house, we buy Munchies and stuff and that’s not good to know that salmonella is in the packaging. That’s kind of gross,” said Josh Panagiotou.
People are being encouraged to check their cupboard for these products and dispose of them.
Salmonella is a bacterium that can possibly cause diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps.
With files from The Canadian Press