There Is a Recall Alert of More Than 200,000 Cans of SPAM

If you plan on cooking Spam anytime soon, you should check the label first before serving it to your family.

The company that manufactures the popular canned meat, Hormel Food Corp., announced Monday, May 28, that it is recalling more than 200,000 cans of pork and chicken products after receiving four consumer complaints stating that metal objects were found inside the cans.

“[Hormel Food] is recalling approximately 228,614 pounds of canned pork and chicken products that may be contaminated with foreign matter, specifically pieces of metal,” the company’s official statement said.

The types of Spam affected are 12-ounce “SPAM Classic” cans, which were shipped all over the U.S., and 12-ounce “Hormel Foods Black-Label Luncheon Loaf” cans, which were only shipped to Guam.

The canned products were produced on February 8 to 10 this year and contain the following codes:

• 12-oz metal cans containing “SPAM Classic” with a “Best By” February 2021 date and production codes F020881, F020882, F020883, F020884, F020885, F020886, F020887, F020888 and F020889.
• 12-oz metal cans containing “Hormel Foods Black-Label Luncheon Loaf” with a “Best By” February 2021 date and production codes F02098 and F02108.

To further check if your Spam can is part of the recall, the products have the establishment number “EST.199N” on the bottom of the can, says the US Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS).

The FSIS says that there have been reports of minor oral injuries associated with consumption of products. If you have Spam cans with the production codes listed above, don’t consume them anymore. FSIS recommends to instead throw it away or return to the place of purchase if possible.

The recall, said Hormel Foods, is "a health hazard situation where there is a reasonable probability that the use of the product will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death."

In the Philippines, Spam is distributed by Purefoods-Hormel Company. As of this writing, they have yet to release an official statement regarding the recall.