A Whole Foods salad mixup has been announced by the chain this morning, warning vegetarians and vegans about a labeling error.
The Whole Foods salad mixup stemmed from the transposition of labels on two separate products served on the chain’s popular hot and cold salad bars.
Across locations of the supermarket in the Northeast, the chain says, the Whole Foods salad mixup involved a chicken salad and its vegan version — “vegan curried ‘chick’n salad’ ” — retailed both on the hot and cold bars as well as behind glass in the prepared food sections in Whole Foods outlets in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York.
Though the Whole Foods salad mixup only affected salads sold Tuesday and Wednesday, the company issued the warning to alert customers who may have soy or egg allergies that could be triggered by a mislabeled product.
According to ABC, a Whole Foods worker discovered the mixup and a recall was initiated:
“Libba Letton, a spokeswoman for Whole Foods, said the salads were mislabeled at a company-owned commissary that supplies food to the stores. She said the mixup was discovered by an employee in the prepared food section at one of its stores. Whole Foods is issuing a recall in line with guidelines set by the FDA and plans to post signs in stores Friday alerting customers about the mislabeled salads, she said.”
No illnesses have been reported after the Whole Foods salad mixup, and, as a precaution, the stores will be posting a recall notice in the affected locations Friday in line with FDA recall guidelines.
Both the vegan version (with soy) and the meat version (with egg) involved in the Whole Foods salad mixup can present a danger to customers with allergies or sensitivities to soy and egg.