Standing by our values

As a food producer, our commitment to our customers and consumers is at the heart of everything we do. That means standing by our values of prioritizing transparency and trust, and ensuring that all of our products always meet our very high quality and safety standards, no matter what. 

This week, we voluntarily and proactively made the decision to pull some of our raw ground sausage products off store shelves and out of distribution because of an issue we discovered at our co-manufacturer, OSI Industries, involving packaging materials found in some of our product. No injuries or illnesses have been reported, but we will always make the right decision to ensure the safety and integrity of our food. 

What happened: Following a small number of consumer contacts, we discovered that some aluminum packaging elements from the fasteners of our ground sausage packaging were found inside some of the raw sausage products produced by our co-manufacturer, OSI Industries. No injuries or illnesses have been reported to date, and we believe that any misplaced packaging material would most likely be identified by consumers during the cooking and handling process, prior to consumption. While our investigation showed that less than 0.00126% of total packages of our raw ground sausage were affected, that simply does not meet our high standard for quality and excellence. 

We’ve already contacted our distributors and retailers with instructions to immediately isolate the recalled products, which were distributed in the marketplace between May 14, 2024 and November 5, 2024. We’re grateful to them for taking immediate action. 

We also completely shut down the OSI production area where the issue was occurring, identified the root cause of the issue with OSI, and resolved the issue by implementing a new packaging process that prevents the issue from recurring. Out of an abundance of caution, we also introduced additional screening measures as part of our quality assurance process.  

Anyone who may have purchased products that are covered by the recall can get a coupon for a future purchase. Fresh Impossible Ground Sausage shipments are already being distributed to restock our customers’ shelves. 

Looking ahead 

We know our Impossible Ground Sausage products are loved by consumers, and we’re disappointed by any instance where our product hasn’t lived up to your or our expectations — this is not something we take lightly, and we’ll work hard to remedy the situation and continue to earn your trust.  

As part of this commitment, consumers and fans who have products that are covered by this recall can get a free coupon for a future purchase. 

In the meantime, please know that we're very sorry this happened, and we're committed to holding ourselves and all of our food production partners to our very high standards to prevent this from happening again. 

FAQs

Q: How do I know if Impossible Food products in my possession are covered by this recall?

A: Each package of raw Impossible Ground Sausage from Plants has a 12-digit UPC number underneath the barcode, and a lot code which can be found next to the “if frozen, best before” date (the code begins with ASH24 followed by 5 digits). You can find the UPC numbers and lot codes of all products covered by this recall here.

Q: What do I do if I’ve eaten products that are covered by this recall? 

A: As this is a raw ground meat product that requires cooking, we believe that any misplaced packaging material would most likely be identified during the cooking and handling process, prior to consumption. No injuries or illnesses have been reported. 

Q: What do I do if I’ve already purchased Impossible Food products that are covered by this recall?

A: The product should be immediately disposed of and not consumed. 

Q: I have other Impossible Food products not covered by this recall.  Are they safe?

A: Yes. You can continue to purchase and consume Impossible products not covered by this recall, including all Impossible Beef, Impossible Burger, Impossible Chicken, as well as Impossible Sausage Links and Impossible Sausage Patties. 

Q: Does this recall include any Impossible Sausage Links or Impossible Sausage Patties products?

A: No, this recall does not affect any Impossible Sausage Links or Impossible Sausage Patties products. 

Q: Does this recall include any Impossible products sold in restaurants / food service establishments? 

A: No, this recall only impacts Impossible Ground Sausage products sold in grocery stores and supermarkets. It does not affect any Impossible products sold in restaurants or food service establishments. 

Q: Does this recall include your Impossible Sausage products in non-U.S. markets? 

A: No. This recall does not affect any Impossible Foods products distributed outside of the United States.

Q: How do I receive a refund / reimbursement for Impossible Foods products in my possession covered by this recall?

A: If you have products that are covered by this recall, you can request a coupon for a future purchase.

Q: Will you refund me for Impossible Food products not covered by this recall that I no longer feel comfortable / safe eating?

A: Right now we’re offering coupons to consumers in possession of the products covered by this recall. However, we welcome your feedback about our products at any time.

Q: Why are the products being recalled? 

A: Following a small number of consumer contacts, we discovered that some aluminum packaging elements from the fasteners of our ground sausage packaging were found inside some of the raw sausage products produced by our co-manufacturer, OSI Industries.

Q:  How can I trust your brand moving forward?

A: When it comes to our food, we hold ourselves to the highest possible standards. That’s why as soon as we identified this problem, we proactively notified the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) about our intent to conduct this recall out of an abundance of caution. We do not take issues like this lightly, and we will always go the extra mile to ensure our products are the highest quality and produced, sourced and handled responsibly.

Q: What is Impossible Foods doing to make sure this doesn’t happen again?

The health and safety of consumers is our top priority, and we are committed to providing our customers with safe, high-quality products that are produced, sourced, and handled responsibly.

Since learning of the issue, we completely shut down the OSI production area where the issue was occurring, identified the root cause of the issue with OSI, and implemented a new packaging process that prevents the issue from recurring. In addition to this, we introduced new screening measures as part of our quality assurance process out of an abundance of caution.

Q: I still have questions / concerns.  How can I get more information?

A: If we haven’t answered your question or you’d like to share feedback, please contact us.