Chocolate Recall As Warning Issued to Customers

New York-based chocolate retailer A Swedish Candy Co. has recalled all its Marabou Sea Salt chocolate bars over fears they could contain quantities of nuts and wheat that aren’t declared on the packaging.

The announcement was made on Friday in coordination with the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The recall notes that those who are allergic or have a severe sensitivity to almonds and wheat “run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reaction” if they eat the chocolate bars.

The product was sold in BonBon retail stores “at 130 Allen St., 1220 Lexington Ave. and 705 Driggs Ave. in New York City” where it was displayed alongside other pre-packaged imported products. According to its website, A Swedish Candy Co. imports all its products directly from Sweden with none being produced in the United States.

Photographs included in the recall announcement show the chocolate bars are in predominantly yellow packaging with “Marabou” written on the front in red letters. They also feature a photograph of several pieces of chocolate and a turquoise circle containing the word “havssault,” Swedish for sea salt, and the words “made in Sweden.”

Each bar is 9 inches by 4 inches in size and weighs 185 grams. The production codes are OUV0134912 and OUV0140643. According to the FDA no illnesses related to the products have been reported so far.

The announcement says: “The recall was initiated after it was discovered that batches of Marabou Sea Salt contained almonds, wheat and nuts outside of its allergen profile.

“The packaging disclosed the product contained ‘traces of nuts and wheat.’ On May 8, 2024, BonBon was informed of the recall by our distributor, Ert Godis, and the product was removed from the sales floor and subsequently destroyed at every retail location.”

Anyone who has brought a Marabou Sea Salt chocolate bar can return it to the place of purchase for a full refund. A Swedish Candy Co. can also be contacted by telephone on 212-786-0094 between 10 a.m. and 12 a.m. Monday through Sunday.

Newsweek contacted A Swedish Candy Co. for comment via email on Saturday outside of regular office hours.

Also on Friday the FDA published a recall notice for guacamole sold in Minnesota grocery stores over fears they may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, a potentially deadly bacteria.

The recall applies to several varieties of guacamole sold at Lunds & Byerlys stores in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area and St. Cloud.

On Thursday the recall of a range of ice cream dessert cakes was upgraded to Class 1, the highest risk level, by the FDA meaning there is a “reasonable probability” that the use of or exposure to a product could “cause serious adverse health consequences or death.” The cakes in question are Maryland-based company Totally Cool, Inc.’s Friendly’s Celebration Ice Cream Cake.

In a warning issued on July 31 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) urged customers not to eat any recently purchased Boar’s Head Provisions’ deli meat in response to a listeria outbreak.