Trader Joe's pulls 10 million pounds of frozen rice products due to glass contamination
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration expanded an earlier recall after receiving numerous complaints of glass found in food items. Credit: AP/Manuel Balce Ceneta
Trader Joe's has voluntarily pulled nearly 10 million pounds of frozen Asian-style rice products from its shelves as part of an expanded U.S. Food and Drug Administration recall due to potential glass contamination, the grocery chain said.
Earlier this month, the Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service announced an update to a previous, recall involving a wide-ranging line of ready-to-eat and frozen products from Oregon-based Ajinomoto Foods North America Inc.
The update said more than 36 million pounds of chicken and pork fried rice, ramen and shu mai dumpling dishes had been affected. The expansion included 16 products produced between Oct. 21, 2024, and Feb. 26, 2026, under a range of brand names including Ajinomoto, Kroger, Ling Ling, Tai Pei and Trader Joe's.
The Trader Joe's website lists four specific products they've recalled, including: Vegetable Fried Rice, Chicken Fried Rice, Japanese Style Fried Rice and Chicken Shu Mai. The products have a range of best-buy dates between Feb. 28, 2026, and Feb. 2, 2027.
In an attached notice, Trader Joe's said: "Related to the Ajinomoto recall initiated on Feb. 19, 2026, in an abundance of caution, we are recalling certain Trader Joe's frozen products because of the potential that they may be contaminated with foreign material — specifically, glass."
The advisory lists the products, then reads: "If you have packages of the products listed above, please do not use them. Please discard the product or return it to any Trader Joe's for a full refund."
Ajinomoto was founded in Japan in 1909 and opened its first U.S. offices in New York in 1917, according to the company website. The company claims it is a "brand leader among the largest categories of ethnic frozen foods" — among them Asian, Mexican and Italian style dishes.
The USDA food safety inspection website said the issue was discovered when Ajinomoto contacted them to report it had "received multiple consumer complaints involving glass found in product." Further investigation determined a vegetable ingredient, specifically carrots, was "the likely source of the glass contamination, which also impacted the additional products subject to this expanded recall."
The USDA also said there had been no confirmed reports of injury due to the consumption of the products.
The products subject to recall bear the number P-18356, P-18356B or P-47971 inside the USDA mark. The USDA said these products had been shipped to 43 states, with some distributed as well to Canada and Mexico.
John Valenti, a Newsday reporter since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press, Society of the Silurians and National Headliner Awards for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing. He is the author of “Swee'pea,” about New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. His debut crime novel, “For Nothing Is Hidden,” rooted in 1950s Long Island, was released in October 2025.
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