Highest level recall issued for potato chips with banned ingredient… ‘probability of death’

Hundreds of pounds of potato chips are being recalled because they contain pork that may pose a serious health risk to American consumers.  

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced a class I recall of 264 lbs of El Eden Import Distributor Corp.’s De Todito Natural and De Todito BBQ potato chips.

The recall was initiated because the chips contain chicharrón (pork cracklings) produced in the Republic of Colombia. 

Colombia is not eligible to export any meat or poultry products to the US.

According to the FSIS recall system, a class I recall is the highest level of three, indicating ‘a health hazard situation where there is a probability that use of the product will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death.’

The recall applies to 45-gram foil bags of De Todito Natural mixed chips with chicharrón Americano Jacks, Margarita and Natu Chips, and 45-gram foil bags of De Todito BBQ mixed chips with chicharrón Americano Jacks, Margarita and Natu Chips. 

The chips were imported on July 28, 2026 and shipped to a distributor in New Jersey and retail locations in New Jersey and Utah. 

The recalled products do not bear any import marks on the labels and the problem was discovered when FSIS received a complaint from a customer regarding the chips.

There have been no reports of illnesses in connection to the recall. 

While the products were imported earlier this summer, the FSIS is concerned the chips may still be in consumers’ pantries. 

Officials are urging Americans to not consume the chips and to throw them away or return them to the place of purchase. 

Chicharrón is made from fried or crispy pork skin, fat and meat and is a popular dish in Spain and throughout Latin America. 

The recall falls under FSIS’s ‘import violation’ category.

Colombia is not allowed to export meat or poultry to the US because it has not been approved by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) as having an equivalent meat and poultry inspection system.

Under US law, a country can only export meat to the US after the USDA FSIS determines that country’s inspection system is equivalent to the US inspection system, which helps to ensure the safety and quality of foreign food products. 

A country’s eligibility to export to the US does not necessarily mean the products are unsafe, rather it means the US has not recognized that country’s inspection system as meeting American requirements. 

The FSIS equivalence process looks at factors such as government oversight and enforcement, inspection staffing and qualifications, sanitation controls, food safety systems, residue and pathogen testing programs and certification and traceability procedures.