Star Natural Meats LLC is recalling frozen Greek sausage because it was made with milk and soy ingredients that are not declared on the product labels, as required by federal law. The sausage also contains restricted ingredients that are not declared on the labels.

Both soy and milk are known allergens and therefore subject to mandatory label declarations. No confirmed illnesses or adverse reactions had been reported in connection with the 20,000 pounds of recalled pork sausage, according to a notice posted by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS).

Government inspectors reported the restricted ingredients left off the sausage labels are sodium nitrite and sodium nitrate. As with known allergen ingredients, federal law requires that restricted ingredients be specified on food labels.

“FSIS is concerned that some product may be in consumers’ refrigerators or freezers. Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase,” according to the recall notice.

“The problem was discovered on Aug. 3 by FSIS Inspection Program Personnel while conducting routine label verification tasks.”

Star Natural Meats, based in Astoria, NY, shipped all 10 tons of the affected pork sausage to retailers in Astoria. All of the implicated sausage has the establishment number “EST. 48109” printed inside the USDA inspection mark on the product labels.

The sausage labels do not have lot numbers or expiration dates. The non-intact, frozen pork sausage is labeled as ready to cook.

Production dates for the recalled pork sausage range from Feb. 23, 2017, to Aug. 3, 2018. Packages of various weights are included in the recall, but those weights are not included in the recall notice. The labels say “LOUKANIKO GREEK BRAND – MADE IN THE U.S.A.”  

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