Legal News

Unilever, the maker of Slimfast (canned diet drinks) has announced that there will be a Slimfast recall of over 10 million cans because of a possible bacterial contamination.

CNN reports that the diet cans may be tainted with the bacteria known as Bacillus Cereus, which causes food poisoning symptoms such as diarrhea, nausea and vomiting. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers the bacteria as "usually self-limiting and not severe."

According to a press release by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, this is a nationwide voluntary recall of ALL Slimfast ready to drink containers.

They outlined the recalled product as:

"The products are packaged in paperboard cartons and contain four, six or 12 steel cans that are 11 FL OZ (325 mL) each. Individual cans are also sold in certain retail outlets. The recall involves all Slim-Fast RTD products in cans, regardless of flavor, Best-By date, lot code or UPC number. A listing of all RTD recalled products is attached to this press release.

No other Slim-Fast products are affected by this recall. No Slim-Fast powdered shakes, meal bars, or snack bars are affected by this recall."

ABC News reports that Unilever spokeswoman Anita Larsen stressed that the recall involves only liquid products in cans and boxes -- not powdered shakes or diet bars.

The FDA says the recall was announced after an inspection done by Unilever. The inspection was done after several complaints from consumers.

The company asks consumers with recalled products "to discard them immediately and contact the company at 1-800-896-9479 for a full refund."

• Unilever Conducts Nationwide Voluntary Recall of Slim-Fast® Ready-to-Drink Products in Cans Due to Possible Health Risk (FDA website)
• Food Recalls (Findlaw)
• Center for Disease Control B. Cereus Outbreak List (CDC website)
• Personal Injuries from Defective Products (provided by Christina Rivenbark & Associates)
• Personal Injury & Wrongful Death FAQ (provided by Corsiglia McMahon & Allard, L.L.P.)