FDA Highlights 'Urgent' Food Recalls To Prevent Salmonella Outbreak

The FDA is drawing attention to two big food recalls aimed at preventing new salmonella outbreaks. The agency published two advisories on its website on Wednesday and Thursday involving two big companies: HelloFresh and Aldi. The recalls span states across the nation and ultimately link back to the suppliers of the fresh produce — peaches and onions, in this case.

On August 19, the FDA published an 'urgent onion recall' alert from HelloFresh, a meal kit delivery service that ships customers fresh foods to be cooked at home. According to the company, one of the suppliers behind its onions has initiated a voluntary recall over the risk of salmonella contamination. The onions from this supplier may have been shipped to HelloFresh customers from May 8 to July 31.

Because of the risk, customers are told to discard the onions if they still have any. The full list of product codes and production numbers belonging to the recalled units can be found on the FDA's website here. HelloFresh notes that customers who cooked the onions to a high enough temperature may have killed the bacteria — but, of course, that's not a risk you want to consciously take.

The FDA published the second recall today, August 20, though it was first announced by the subject of the advisory — Aldi — yesterday. In this case, the recall involves peaches that were supplied by Wawona Packing Company. Aldi has pulled the peaches from stores in a large number of states, including Rhode Island, New York, Ohio, Florida, Connecticut, Wisconsin, West Virginia, and more.

The peaches were sold in 2lb bags under the brand names 'Wawona Peaches' and 'Peaches Organic.' As well, these peaches were available to purchase through Aldi sales on the delivery platform Instacart. Customers are advised to either return the peaches to the store for a refund or to throw them away uneaten.