Reser's recalls pasta salad in seven states over undeclared allergens

Reser’s Fine Foods recalled about 5,300 pounds of ready-to-eat Molly’s Kitchen California Style Pasta Salad after the product was found to have been mislabeled and may actually contain chicken salad with undeclared egg and milk. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service classified it as a High-Class I recall and warned that some of the tubs may still be sitting in home refrigerators.

Consumers with the recalled product should not eat it. FSIS said to throw it away or return it to the place of purchase. The affected pasta salad was produced on June 11, 2026, packed in 5-pound plastic tubs, marked with establishment number P-00874, and stamped with USE BY JUL/16/26 430. The product went to distributors in Alabama, Florida, North Carolina, New Jersey, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia for further distribution to foodservice locations, so the tubs were not limited to grocery shelves.

FSIS said the problem surfaced after Reser’s notified the agency that it had mislabeled ready-to-eat chicken salad as pasta salad. No confirmed adverse reactions had been reported as of the announcement, but the undeclared egg and milk create a serious risk for anyone with those allergies. Food Allergy Research & Education issued an allergy alert the same day, underscoring that the concern is not a general spoilage issue but a labeling failure tied to a specific allergen exposure.

This kind of mix-up usually enters prepared pasta products in one of two ways: a label is applied to the wrong finished product, or ingredients from a nearby line are not fully separated before packing. In a chilled deli-style item, that can happen fast, especially when chicken salad and pasta salad travel through the same plant, the same tubs, or the same distribution channel. For home cooks, the lesson is equally plain. Keep cold dishes under 40 degrees, separate utensils for protein-heavy fillings and pasta salads, and never rely on appearance alone when a container might hold something other than what the label says.

The recall adds another cautionary note to a year that has already seen pasta safety problems beyond allergen misbranding, including prior investigations and recalls tied to prepared pasta meals. Here, the risk is immediate and specific: if Molly’s Kitchen California Style Pasta Salad is in the fridge, it should not be served.