Walmart fruit cocktail recalled over lead
Archived — this story has rotated out of today’s deck. It is kept here in full.
The gist
Pacific Coast Producers recalled 44,064 cans of Great Value Fruit Cocktail over elevated lead.
The FDA says no lead exposure level is safe, so check lot codes.
Background
Walmart is the retailer whose Great Value brand Fruit Cocktail in Fruit Juice is affected; the product was distributed by Walmart Inc. of Bentonville, Arkansas. Pacific Coast Producers, the company that initiated the recall, pulled the cans voluntarily on Oct. 1, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the U.S. agency that regulates food safety, later rated the recall Class II. The recall covers 1,836 cases of 24 cans each, sold in Alabama, Arizona, Louisiana, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wyoming.
How it unfolded
- Oct 1, 2026Pacific Coast Producers initiated a voluntary recall of Great Value Fruit Cocktail in Fruit Juice from Concentrate over potential contamination with elevated levels of lead.
- Oct 20, 2026The FDA assigned the recall a Class II rating, meaning exposure may cause temporary or medically reversible harm and the probability of serious harm is remote.
- Oct 22, 2026As of this date, Walmart had not issued a public recall notice on its website; the FDA said the recall status is ongoing and no press release was issued.
Who’s saying what
- Official
- The FDA warns there are no safe levels of exposure to lead and says consumers should not eat the recalled products.
- Official
- The FDA rated the recall Class II, a category for products whose use may cause temporary or medically reversible adverse health effects, with serious harm considered remote.
Still unverified
Sources differ on when the FDA assigned the Class II rating: al.com and masslive.com say the agency did not classify the risk level until Oct. 1, while Quartz and The Healthy say the rating was assigned Oct. 20.