Dollar Tree didn’t do a good job recalling applesauce pouches that contained lead, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
These pouches made over 500 children sick, but they stayed on some store shelves for two months after the recall.
The FDA sent a warning letter to Dollar Tree and put restrictions on Negasmart, the company in Ecuador that distributed the WanaBana apple cinnamon pouches. This happened after the products were recalled in October 2023 because they had very high levels of lead and chromium
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that children in 44 states had high levels of lead in their blood after eating these pouches, which were meant for toddlers. The outbreak was declared over in April.
The FDA said Dollar Tree kept selling these products in several states until late December, even though they knew about the recall. Dollar Tree said they stopped the products from being sold at checkout, but the FDA said this wasn’t enough. One child in Washington state ate a recalled pouch in a store before it could be bought.
Dollar Tree says they have new management and are working on improving how they handle recalls. They have over 16,000 stores in 48 states.
The FDA also put restrictions on Negasmart to make sure they can’t bring any products into the U.S. Tests showed that the cinnamon from their plant had lead levels 2,000 times higher than what the FDA considers safe.
The CDC says anyone who ate these pouches should see a doctor. There’s no safe amount of lead, and it can cause serious learning and behavior problems.
The recalled pouches include WanaBana brand sold at Dollar Tree and online, and Schnucks and Weis brands sold in stores. Because they last a long time, people might still have them at home. The CDC warns not to eat or serve these pouches and to throw them away.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.