Shoppers warned after major recall impacts popular food products — here's what you need to know

Whether you're vegetarian, into health food, or just looking for a Mediterranean snack, hummus is a beloved standby. Unfortunately, some customers in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington are getting more than they bargained for in their King Harvest hummus tubs. The company issued a recall for batches of the dip that may be contaminated with fragments of plastic, Forbes reported.

What's happening?

The affected batches of hummus had expiration dates between February 2 and March 2 and came in a range of flavors. They were sold at Pacific Coast Fresh Co. and Kroger-affiliated stores like Fred Meyer and QFC. There were roughly 71,987 10-ounce tubs affected.

The full list of affected flavors includes these flavors: Balsamic, Black Olive, Chipotle, Classic, Jalapeño, Lemon, Roasted Pepper, Roasted Garlic, Spinach, Sundried Tomato, Toasted Onion, and Toasted Sesame.

At this time, no injuries have been reported.

Why is this food recall important?

First of all, even though the expiration dates have passed, it's important to check your fridge and freezer just in case. Buyers sometimes unknowingly keep products like this past the best-by date or freeze the items to eat later, so there could still be some in your home. That presents a risk of choking, mouth and throat injuries, and digestive distress.

Second, a recall like this one puts the spotlight on the role of plastic in our food production. We're all unknowingly consuming tiny fragments of plastic in our food and water, and the long-term effects of having them build up in our bodies are still unknown. Some governments are trying to reduce this effect by banning certain kinds of plastic food containers, but plastic is still used in all kinds of food preparation and packaging as well as being found in ingredients from environmental pollution.

What's being done about plastic in our food?

King Harvest told Forbes that in addition to issuing the recall and offering full refunds for affected products, it is also conducting an investigation into how the contamination happened in the first place. In the future, that will hopefully mean less plastic used in the production of its products and less risk of contamination.

Meanwhile, you can limit your exposure by eliminating bottled water — the source of a huge portion of microplastic exposure.

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