Trader Joe’s recalls popular product due to salmonella. It comes from a California company

National supermarket chain Trader Joe’s has recalled a popular product made by a California company — just weeks after pulling a frozen food item off its shelves.

Trader Joe’s recalled its 50% Less Sodium Roasted & Salted Whole Cashews after discovering that the nuts, supplied by Wenders LLC of Dublin, were potentially contaminated with salmonella.

“No illnesses have been reported to date,” the Food and Drug Administration wrote in a March 17 statement to Trader Joe’s customers.

The issue was identified through routine testing by the FDA that indicated “at least one of the recalled lots tested positive for the presence of salmonella,” the federal agency said.

Both Wenders LLC and Trader Joe’s issued recalls for specific production lots of the cashews.

“We have a close relationship with our vendors,” Trader Joe’s said in a March 17 statement. “We err on the side of caution and are proactive in addressing issues.”

“We voluntarily take action quickly, aggressively investigating potential problems and removing the product from sale if there is any doubt about its safety or quality,” the Pasadena-based grocery store chain added.

Have my Trader Joe’s cashews been recalled?

Trader Joe’s 50% Less Salted Roasted & Salted Whole Cashews with a SKU number of 37884 have been recalled.

The product can be identified by the country of origin — India or Vietnam — and the ot number printed on the back panel of the plastic pouches.

The cashews should not be eaten if they fall within the following sell-by dates:

• Lot No. T12139 - Best before Feb. 21, 2025
• Lot No. T12140 - Best before March 1, 2025
• Lot No. T12141 - Best before March 8, 2025
• Lot No. T12142 - Best Before March 10, 2025

Where were nuts sold?

The potentially contaminated nuts were sold in Trader Joe’s stores in the following states:

• Alabama
• Arkansas
• Arizona
• California
• Colorado
• Idaho
• Kansas
• Louisiana
• New Mexico
• Nevada
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• Washington

No other lot numbers or products are affected by the recall, according to the FDA.

What you should do next

Do not eat the cashews, Trader Joe’s said.

“We urge you to discard the product or return it to any Trader Joe’s for a full refund,” the company said.

Questions should be directed to cashew supplier Wenders LLC, in Dublin, at foodsafety@wendersllc.com.

What are symptoms of salmonella?

Salmonella is an organism that can cause “serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems,” the FDA said.

Common symptoms of salmonella include:

• Fever
• Diarrhea (may be bloody)
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Abdominal pain

Rare symptoms include:

• Arterial infection
• Endocarditis
• Arthritis

What other foods have been recalled?

The latest recall comes less than a month after Trader Joe’s recalled its Steamed Chicken Soup Dumplings for possibly containing plastic.

On Feb. 7, two sauces and one salad kit were pulled from shelves after dairy items from Modesto-based Rizo-López Foods were linked to 26 cases of listeria over the past 10 years.

This story was originally published March 21, 2024 at 12:52 PM.