Ocean Spray Craisins recalled because of metal fragments

Ocean Spray is recalling certain lots of packaged and bulk original flavor Craisins -- sweetened dried cranberries -- because they may be contaminated with small, hairlike metal particles.

Ocean Spray announced the voluntary recall late Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, one of the most cranberry-centric holidays of the year. The company initiated the recall on Wednesday, according to spokesman John Isaf. It wasn't clear when officials became aware of the problem.

Company officials say certain lots of Craisins in 5-ounce, 10-ounce and 48-ounce packages are affected by the recall, as well as bulk sweetened dried cranberries in 10-pound packages.

Isaf would not give an exact total of volume of cranberries recalled, saying only that it was "very small," or less than one-quarter of 1 percent of the total pounds of dried cranberries produced annually.

However, in an e-mail to a New England business newspaper summer, Isaf reportedly said that dried cranberry production at the firm's Middleboro site would increase from 40 million pounds a year to 60 million pounds annually. Using that figure, the recall could involve about 150,000 pounds of sweetened dried cranberries.

Officials said they've received no reports of consumers harmed by the metal fragments. They added that the particles are unlikely to cause injury. The fragments were caused by a malfunction on a piece of equipment on the production line at one of the firm's cranberry-making facilities. The problem has been identified and corrected, Isaf said.

The recalled product lots (only dates followed by the letter M are affected) are:

• 5-oz. Craisins UPC: 00293-000 Best By Dates/Letter: Oct 27 2012 M
• 10-oz. Craisins UPC: 29456-000 and 29464-000 Best By Dates/Letter: Oct 27 2012 M, Oct 28 2012 M, Oct 29 2012 M
• 48-oz. Craisins UPC: 00678-318 Best By Dates/Letter: Oct 27 2012 M, Oct 28 2012 M, Nov 3 2012 M, Nov 4 2012 M, Nov 5 2012 M, Nov 6 2012 M, Nov 7 2012 M, Nov 10 2012 M, Nov 11 2012 M.
• 10-lb. bulk ingredient & food service UPC: 03477-000 Best By Dates/Letter: 30 Oct 2013 M, 31 Oct 2013 M, 1 Nov 2013 M, 5 Nov 2013 M. 

  Ocean Spray urged consumers to destroy the product, save the UPC label and Best By dates and contact the Ocean Spray consumer hotline at 1-800-662-3263.