One Sam's Club Recall Pulled Almost 150,000 Boxes Of Treats Off The Shelves

There are times when coming across a surprise element in food can be a pleasure. Consider the king cake, which often contains a hidden figurine representing the baby Jesus: It has been a staple of celebrations for the Feast of the Epiphany for centuries. But the king cake is just one of many crowd-pleasing foods that conceal another delicious ingredient, from arancini — a delicious solution for your leftover rice problem — and piñata cakes to the mysterious Thanksgiving meat tsunami that is the turducken. Aside from finding the figurine in the king cake, plastic in your food is rarely cause for celebration however — and that's the situation addressed by a massive Sam's Club recall.

In December 2022, the Canada-based company Sublime Desserts issued a recall for 148,000 units of its Member's Mark Holiday Macarons (sold exclusively at Sam's Club) because of potential contamination from plastic particles. Because the macarons were frozen, there was concern that consumers might keep them long after the initial purchase (the products did not expire until October to December 2023, according to the dates on the packaging). The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) labeled the action as a Class II recall, indicating that the contaminant might cause temporary or reversible health problems, but was unlikely to create serious or lasting health issues. No health problems related to the macarons were reported at the time of the recall.

Recalls are part of the business of running retail giants in the U.S. and abroad, and Sam's Club has not been immune to them. Over the past decade, Sam's Club food recalls have affected millions, for a variety of reasons. Salmonella was the culprit behind a recall of Jennie-O All Natural Turkey Burgers in 2011 and JIF peanut butter in 2022. The equally gruesome bacteria, listeria, led to the removal of various stone fruits in 2024 as well as 26 different kinds of muffins in 2021. Meanwhile, lack of accurate information caused a 2024 recall of Member's Mark Breaded Mozzarella Sticks. Rich Products, the producer of the breaded cheese sticks, failed to list soy and egg among the ingredients, both of which can cause serious health problems for those allergic to them.

Curiously, particles of plastic are at the heart of several Sam's Club recalls. What's meant by "plastic particles" is not the microplastics that are an unavoidable part of eating and drinking today, but larger pieces, such as those found in cans of Member's Mark Premium Natural Chunk Chicken Breast in Water in 2018 and frozen chicken nugget products from Tyson in 2014.

This list of recalls is in no way a criticism of Sam's Club. If anything, it underscores the retailer's commitment to keeping its customers safe and abiding by federal requirements to remove potentially hazardous food items.