An urgent nationwide recall for a popular chocolate brand has been issued, over fears its bars contain a potential choking hazard.
Two flavors of Tony’s Chocolonely sold in a spread of stores across the country including Whole Foods, Target, Safeway and CVS, have been found to contain small stones.
The FDA warns that ‘hard or sharp foreign objects in food may cause traumatic injury including laceration and perforation of tissues of the mouth, tongue, throat, stomach and intestine as well as damage to the teeth and gums.’
To date, 12 consumers have filed complaints with the Dutch chocolate manufacturer, triggering the decision to recall the compromised product.
The two products affected are the Dark Almond Sea Salt and the Everything Bars (containing milk chocolate with caramel, pretzel, almond nougat and sea salt), and both are in 180g sizes.
The urgent safety recall affects the bars with the specific lot codes: 163094, 162634, M162634, 4327, 4330, 4331, M4331.
Dark Almond Sea Salt bars with the best before dates 28 February 2026 and 2 April 2026 should be avoided.
While Everything bars should be returned if the best before date lies between the 22 and 26 November of this year.
Two flavors of Tony’s Chocolonely sold in spread of stores across the country including Whole Foods, Target, Safeway and CVS, have been found to contain small stones
A spokesperson for Tony’s Chocolonely said the small stones made their way into the bars during ‘third-party almond harvesting and the almond processing process’.
All complaints so far have occurred outside of the US and Canada and no injuries have been reported.
Meanwhile, the company highlights that no other Tony’s products are affected.
The company, which launched out of Amsterdam in 2005, currently manufacturers more than eight flavors of chocolate, ranging from honey almond nugget to milk chocolate caramel sea salt.
Consumers who still have the compromised product are urged not to eat it.
In Canada, the Dark Almond Sea Salt bars can be identified using the lot number 162697, while the Everything bars are marked with the code 4332.
Those in possession of the chocolate bars are advised to throw them away or return it to the store where it was purchased for a replacement item or refund.
Customers can also contact Tony’s at (503)-388-5990.
The same recall has been issued in the UK due to the same problem involving stone fragments.
In a statement, the company said: ‘We are extremely sorry to have to issue this recall, and for the inconvenience that this will cause people who purchased these products.
‘Whilst the probability of a product being affected is low, we always put the safety and satisfaction of our consumers first and that is why we have made the decision to recall these products.’
