KitKat Bites recalled by Nestle over allergy fears after packs were mistakenly filled with peanut snacks.
The company has recalled pouch bags of KitKat Original Milk Chocolate Bites, saying they may have been incorrectly packed with peanut butter chocolates.
It has warned people with nut or peanut allergies to be “especially vigilant.”
While KitKats were invented in York and are still made at the company’s factory in Haxby Road, a spokeswoman said the KitKat Bites at the centre of the alert are made in a Nestlé Factory in Bulgaria.
She said: “Although these packs are clearly labelled with ‘may contain peanuts and nuts’ there is a risk to anyone with a nut or peanut allergy who may consume their contents without realising.
“Although these products are otherwise safe to consume we are making this recall as a precaution. This does not affect any other KitKat products.”
Nestle said the product affected is the 104g KitKat Bites pouch bag, with the line code 12311184 and batch code 70720457V2.
People who have bought the chocolates are advised not to eat them but return them to Nestle, with a full refund.
Anyone concerned about the issue should contact Nestle on 0800 604 604.
The Food Standards Agency said it had declared an ‘allergy alert,’ saying that because peanuts and nuts were not declared on the label, the product was a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy to nuts and/or peanuts.
“Nestlé is recalling the above product from customers and is contacting the relevant allergy support organisations, which will tell their members about the recall,” it said.
“The company has also issued a point-of-sale notice to its customers. These notices explain to customers why the product is being recalled and tell them what to do if they have bought the product.”
Commenting about allergy alerts, the agency said that sometimes there would be a problem with a food product that meant it should not be sold.
“Then it might be ‘withdrawn’ (taken off the shelves) or ‘recalled’ (when customers are asked to return the product).
“Sometimes foods have to be withdrawn or recalled if there is a risk to consumers because the allergy labelling is missing or incorrect or if there is any other food allergy risk. When there is a food allergy risk, the FSA will issue an Allergy Alert.”
