FDA Class I recall: undeclared peanut in chocolate covered raisins caused by mis-packaging (Lehi Valley Trading)

1Why an undeclared ingredient is Class I

Undeclared allergens are one of the most common categories of recall reason in the United States. The product is not spoiled, and no harmful bacteria have been introduced. The problem is that an ingredient present in the food is not stated on the label. People with allergies rely on the label to decide whether a food is safe for them, so when the label and the contents diverge, the basis for that decision falls away.

2The nine allergens U.S. law covers

U.S. law requires major food allergens to be declared. The list covers milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat and soybeans, with sesame added in 2023, for nine in total. Peanut is recognized among these as an allergen that can trigger anaphylaxis — a rapid, whole-body reaction — from small amounts, which is why undeclared peanut is a pattern that commonly lands in Class I.

3The cause: mis-packaging

The immediate cause here is recorded as mis-packaging: on the production line, the pairing of packaging and contents was switched, so a container labeled as chocolate covered raisins held product containing peanut. The label content shown in FDA records declares milk and soy, with no mention of peanut.

The label itself was printed correctly while the contents differed — a type of incident best understood as a reconciliation problem in the packaging step, distinct from a printing error or a missed ingredient changeover.

4Why it matters

At 624 containers (585 pounds), this is a small food recall by volume. But undeclared allergens are governed not by quantity but by whether a single affected person consumes the product, which is why identifiers such as lot 0160933 and the best-by date of January 23, 2027 are published.

Automating and duplicating the check that matches contents against label in the packaging step is the central control for reducing incidents of this kind.