Over 1.5 Million Bags of Shredded Cheese Recalled for Potential Metal Contamination
By Kirsty Hatcher
Products sold at Walmart, Publix, Aldi, and other grocery stores have been recalled, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
NEED TO KNOW
- Great Lakes Cheese Co. has issued a voluntary recall for several different types of its shredded cheese products
- In a Dec. 3 notice, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said the products were recalled due to “potential metal fragments”
- The cheese products were distributed in 31 states and Puerto Rico
Great Lakes Cheese Co., a cheese manufacturer and packager headquartered in Ohio, has issued a voluntary recall on several of its products.
In a Dec. 3 notice, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said the shredded cheese products were recalled due to “potential metal fragments.”
The products were distributed in 31 states, including Texas, California and New York and Puerto Rico, according to the FDA.
The recall has been rated a “class II recall” by the FDA, which means the product could “cause temporary or medically reversible adverse health consequences.” The “probability of serious adverse health consequences is remote,” the FDA adds.
The FDA uses classifications — Class I, II or II — to indicate the “degree of health hazard” of a recalled product.
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Shredded cheese.
The products affected include nearly 236,000 cases of low-moisture part-skim mozzarella shredded cheese, sold at stores such as Publix and Sprouts Farmers Market, and 15,490 cases of Italian-style shredded cheese blend, including products under Walmart’s private label, Great Value.
The recall also covers 4,298 cases of pizza-style shredded cheese blend, 4,131 cases of mozzarella and provolone shredded cheese blend, 1,900 cases of Happy Farms by Aldi Italian Style shredded cheese blend, 1,850 cases of Target’s Good & Gather mozzarella & parmesan shredded cheese blend and 117 cases of Food Club finely shredded pizza-style four-cheese blend.
The products have sell-by dates ranging from January to late March 2026, per the FDA. The total number of bags of cheese affected is more than 1.5 million, per NBC 4 New York.
Other states where the shredded cheese products were distributed include Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.
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A plate of shredded cheese pictured alongside eggs and a bowl of flour.
Great Lakes Cheese Co. clarified to PEOPLE that all recalled products have been removed from retail markets and replaced with new products.
The company was founded in 1958 by Hans Epprecht and operates today across nine plants that span six states, including Tennessee and Utah, according to its website.
The recall comes just days after pecorino Romano cheese products were recalled because of the potential presence of listeria.
One of Boar’s Head Brand’s suppliers, Ambriola Company, issued a recall of select pecorino Romano cheese products due to possible listeria contamination on Nov. 24.
The FDA rated the recalled as a “class I recall,” which is defined as “a situation in which there is a reasonable probability that the use of, or exposure to, a violative product will cause serious adverse health consequences or death.”
