Hy-Vee Recalls Cream Cheese, Cookies & Cream for Salmonella Outbreak

Hy-Vee has issued a voluntary recall of two of its products amidst reports of a potential salmonella outbreak.

The employee-owned grocery store chain told KY3 that it is voluntarily recalling its private-label cream cheese spread and its private-label cookies and cream mix due to the potential contamination of the two products with the gram-negative bacteria.

The products, according to Hy-Vee, were manufactured at different plants across the Midwest, and they were alerted to the potential contamination by the manufacturers themselves. The outlet also has a list of the UPCs and lot numbers of potentially affected products.

Though no consumers have reported any illness as of this writing, consumers are encouraged to check their UPCs and lot numbers if they purchased the two products listed above. Affected consumers can return their products to their nearest Hy-Vee for a full refund.

Consumers are also encouraged to call the customer care hotline at 800-772-4098 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. CT Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday if they have any questions.

This is just the latest in the multitude of recalls affecting American consumers nationwide.

Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recalled more than 16,000 pounds of ground beef sold at Walmart and other stores due to worries about E. coli contamination. The government agency announced the official recall on its website, saying that the beef was produced between April 26 and April 27.

And this uptick in product recalls is indicative of a larger, nationwide trend.

Sedgwick Brand Protection’s 2024 State of the Nation Recall Index study states that between 2022 and 2023, there was an 11% increase in product recalls, which was a level not seen in seven years. Sedgwick said in a press statement that 3,301 recalls in five industries — automotive, consumer products, food and beverage, medical devices, and pharmaceuticals — were found in the research for 2023.

Sedgwick emphasized that although there was an increase in recalls last year for the second year in a row, the number of faulty units — whether it be a single automobile or food packet — decreased by over 50% in comparison to 2022.