A chicken sausage sold at Costco is being pulled from stores and homes after a federal recall notice warned it may contain foreign material. Shoppers who bought the product are being told to check their freezers and avoid eating it.
The recall affects a ready-to-eat sausage product distributed to Costco locations, and it matters because many people may still have unopened packages stored for later use. Officials say the issue involves possible plastic pieces in the food, which can pose a choking or injury risk.
What product is being recalled
The recall was announced July 30 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service, which said approximately 61,000 pounds of chicken sausage are affected. The product is Aidells Chicken & Apple Smoked Chicken Sausage made by Salm Partners, LLC, according to the agency’s notice.
The recalled item was produced on May 13, 2024, and comes in 12-ounce vacuum-sealed packages labeled “Aidells CHICKEN & APPLE SMOKED CHICKEN SAUSAGE.” The packages have a use-by date of “AUG 27 2024” and bear establishment number “P-32009” inside the USDA mark of inspection.
FSIS said the sausage was shipped to retail locations nationwide, including Costco stores. The recall was classified as a Class I recall, the agency’s most serious category, meaning there is a reasonable probability that using the product could cause serious health consequences or death.
The problem came to light after the company received three consumer complaints reporting white pieces of plastic in the sausage. So far, there have been no confirmed reports of injury tied to the recalled product, but officials said anyone concerned about an illness or injury should contact a healthcare provider.
Why Costco shoppers should look now
This is the kind of recall that can easily slip past people if they are not paying close attention. Chicken sausage is often bought in multi-pack grocery trips, then frozen and forgotten until a quick dinner night, which means affected packages could still be sitting in home freezers weeks after the recall date.
That is why food safety officials are telling consumers not to eat the product if they have it. Instead, they should either throw it away or return it to the place of purchase. For Costco members, that means checking recent freezer buys and matching the product name, package size, use-by date, and establishment number against the recall details.
Recall numbers matter here because they help shoppers avoid confusion with similar items. In this case, the USDA recall notice identifies recall case number 025-2024, and the packaging includes establishment number P-32009. Those numbers are often the fastest way to confirm whether a package at home is part of the affected lot.
Costco shoppers are used to stocking up, and that makes freezer checks especially important in a case like this. A single purchase can last for several meals, and because the sausage is fully cooked and ready to heat, it is the kind of product people may grab without thinking twice unless they know there is an active recall.
What the risk means for families
Foreign-material recalls can sound minor at first, but food safety experts say they should be taken seriously. Hard plastic pieces in sausage can cause mouth injuries, chipped teeth, choking, or internal irritation, especially for children, older adults, and anyone who eats quickly without noticing a texture problem right away.
FSIS said the issue involved “white pieces of plastic” found in the product. The agency did not say exactly how large the pieces were, but any unexpected material in a ready-to-eat food raises concern because consumers are less likely to inspect it closely before eating.
Another reason this matters is that chicken sausage is often used in simple family meals. It might be sliced into pasta, added to sheet-pan dinners, served in buns, or heated for a fast lunch. In all of those cases, a foreign object could end up mixed into a meal before someone realizes anything is wrong.
The good news is that no illnesses or injuries had been confirmed when the recall was announced. Still, recalls like this are designed to get ahead of harm, not wait for more reports to come in. That is why officials urge people to act even if the package looks normal and the food appears safe from the outside.
What to do if you have it at home
Anyone who finds the recalled sausage in a freezer or refrigerator should not eat it, serve it, or donate it. The safest move is to dispose of it or take it back to Costco for a refund, following the usual guidance given in food recall situations.
Consumers should look for four key details on the package: the Aidells Chicken & Apple Smoked Chicken Sausage name, the 12-ounce size, the use-by date of AUG 27 2024, and establishment number P-32009. If those details match, the product falls under the recall announced under FSIS recall number 025-2024.
People who think they may have been injured after eating the sausage should contact a medical provider. FSIS also typically advises consumers with food safety questions to contact the company or the agency’s meat and poultry hotline, though the most immediate step is simply making sure the product is no longer in the kitchen.
For shoppers, the broader takeaway is simple: when a recall involves a freezer-friendly staple sold at a warehouse chain, it is worth checking sooner rather than later. Products like this can sit untouched for months, and a quick look at a package label can prevent an avoidable health risk at dinnertime.
