Kraft Recalls Mac&Cheese Due to Complaints about Metal Pieces

Kraft Foods is recalling Mac and Cheese product after receiving 8 complaints about metal. Approximately 242,000 cases (approx. 6.5 million boxes) are being recalled.

From the report, the product was produced on one manufacturing line over the period of approximately one month.  One would expect that the company would have a metal detector in place at the end of the line / after filling and sealing of the box.

It is good that the consumer complaint system was able to identify this, but the bad thing is that it was not caught through the preventive maintenance or quality program.


The News Gazette
 http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2015-03-18/updated-recalled-mac-cheese-was-made-champaign-plant.html
Updated: Recalled mac & cheese was made at Champaign plant

Wed, 03/18/2015 - 5:05pm | Don Dodson

CHAMPAIGN — Kraft Foods is trying to determine how small pieces of metal got into some boxes of original-flavor Kraft Macaroni & Cheese at the Champaign plant where it's made.

"We believe a piece of stainless steel got wedged in a metal piece of equipment, which may have generated friction that resulted in small pieces of metal potentially falling into the product," Kraft spokeswoman Joyce Hodel said.

On Tuesday, Kraft voluntarily recalled about 6.5 million boxes of the product after receiving eight reports of consumers finding metal in the boxes. No injuries were reported.

The recall was limited to 7.25-ounce boxed dinners with "best when used by" dates of Sept. 18, 2015, through Oct., 11, 2015, with the code "C2" directly below the date on the individual box.

"C2" refers to the specific production line on which the product was made. Hodel said the recalled product was made on one line in Champaign.

The products were sold throughout the U.S. and Puerto Rico and in some countries in the Caribbean and South America. Customers who purchased the product should not eat it, the company said.

Altogether, Kraft recalled 242,000 cases of the product. In addition to individual boxes, some of the dinners were sold in three-, four- and five-box packs.

When asked how much a recall of 6.5 million boxes would cost the company, Hodel said, "It's too early to speculate about the cost of this action. Right now, we're focused on executing the recall."

It's the second high-profile recall involving the Champaign plant over the last year. In June, Kraft recalled Velveeta cheese from Walmart stores in as many as 12 states because the cheese didn't have the proper amount of preservatives — namely, sorbic acid. That recall, however, involved only 260 cases of the product.

Hodel said Kraft is "in the process of implementing a number of steps to further reduce the potential for foreign matter entering into our manufacturing processes and to increase our detection capability to prevent it from getting into finished products."

She said Champaign plant manager John Smith was brought on board last fall to lead ongoing implementation of "Integrated Lean Six Sigma" — a system involving continuous improvement processes with the aim of eliminating waste and defects.

"We're pleased he's leading this important work here," she said.

Hodel called the Champaign plant "a cornerstone of our manufacturing operations, making more products than any other site in our U.S. network." The plant celebrated its 50-year anniversary in 2013.

"We deeply apologize to the consumers we have disappointed," Hodel said. "When we see something that is not in accordance with our strict food safety standards, we take action, as we're doing with this voluntary recall."

Consumers who bought dinners affected by the recall should return them to the store where they were purchased for an exchange or full refund. They can also contact Kraft Foods Consumer Relations at 1-800-816-9432 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Central time for a full refund.

 

Kraft Website
http://newscenter.kraftfoodsgroup.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=253200&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=2026530
KRAFT FOODS GROUP VOLUNTARILY RECALLS SELECT CODE DATES AND MANUFACTURING CODES OF KRAFT MACARONI & CHEESE BOXED DINNERS DUE TO POSSIBLE METAL PIECES
Approx. 242,000 cases of the Original flavor with "Best When Used By" dates of September 18, 2015 through October 11, 2015 with "C2" directly below the date


NORTHFIELD, Ill., March 17, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Kraft Foods Group is voluntarily recalling approximately 242,000 cases of select code dates and manufacturing codes of the Original flavor of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Dinner – due to the possibility that some boxes may contain small pieces of metal. The recalled product is limited to the 7.25-oz. size of the Original flavor of boxed dinner with the "Best When Used By" dates of September 18, 2015 through October 11, 2015, with the code "C2" directly below the date on each individual box. The "C2" refers to a specific production line on which the affected product was made.

Some of these products have also been packed in multi-pack units that have a range of different code dates and manufacturing codes on the external packaging (box or shrink-wrap), depending on the package configuration (see table below).

Recalled product was shipped to customers in the U.S. and several other countries, excluding Canada. The affected dates of this product were sold in only these four configurations:
7.25 oz. box, Original flavor
3-pack box of those 7.25 oz. boxes, Original flavor
4-pack shrink-wrap of those 7.25 oz. boxes, Original flavor
5-pack shrink-wrap of those 7.25 oz. boxes, Original flavor

The following is being recalled:

Product Size	Name of Product	Sell Unit  Best When Used By Code Date & Mfr. Code	Individual Box Best When Used By Code Date & Mfr. Code	Individual Box UPC	Multi-Pack Unit UPC
7.25 oz. each	Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Boxed Dinner Original Flavor	NA	18 SEP 2015  C2 through 11 OCT 2015 C2	0 21000 65883 1	NA
3-Pack Box (Three 7.25 oz. Boxes) Net Wt. 21.75 oz.	3-Pack Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Boxed Dinner Original Flavor	09 SEP 2015 XDG 27 SEP 2015 XDG 01 OCT 2015 XDG 02 OCT 2015 XDG 03 OCT 2015 XDG 20 NOV 2015 XDG	18 SEP 2015  C2 through 11 OCT 2015 C2	0 21000 65883 1	0 21000 05076 5
4-Pack Shrink–wrap (Four 7.25 oz. Boxes) Net Wt. 29 oz.	4-Pack Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Boxed Dinner Original Flavor	18 SEP 2015 C2 19 SEP 2015 C2 08 OCT 2015 C2	18 SEP 2015  C2 through 11 OCT 2015 C2	0 21000 65883 1	0 21000 72540 3
5-Pack Shrink-wrap (Five 7.25 oz. Boxes) Net Wt. 36.25 oz.	5-Pack Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Boxed Dinner Original Flavor	18 SEP 2015 through 11 OCT 2015   XAR or C2	18 SEP 2015  C2 through 11 OCT 2015 C2	0 21000 65883 1	0 21000 77436 4

No other sizes, varieties or pasta shapes and no other packaging configurations are included in this recall. And no products with manufacturing codes other than "C2" below the code date on the individual box are included in this recall.

Kraft has received eight consumer contacts about this product from the impacted line within this range of code dates and no injuries have been reported. We deeply regret this situation and apologize to any consumers we have disappointed.

The recalled product was shipped by Kraft to customers nationwide in the U.S. The product was also distributed to Puerto Rico and some Caribbean and South American countries -- but not to Canada.

Consumers who purchased this product should not eat it. They should return it to the store where purchased for an exchange or full refund. Consumers also can contact Kraft Foods Consumer Relations at 1-800-816-9432 between 9 am and 6 pm (Eastern) for a full refund.