April 7, 2026 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is retracting the public health alert issued on April 1, 2026, for Walmart Great Value Fully Cooked Dino Shaped Chicken Breast Nuggets with “Best If Used By” date “Feb 10 2027” produced by Dorada Foods after confirming that the product does not pose a public health concern.
The public health alert was originally issued based on routine surveillance sampling conducted by the New York State Department of Public Health that indicated elevated trace levels of lead. Because this product is commonly consumed by children, FSIS issued the alert to inform consumers of a potential risk.
Following the alert, additional sampling was conducted by the New York State Department of Public Health and the producing establishment, Dorada Foods. As part of that process, the original lot of product was tested as well as additional lots.
All follow up testing, including testing of the original lot, found no elevated levels of lead in the product.
FSIS subsequently reviewed the underlying laboratory data in coordination with the New York State Department of Health and determined that the initial result was a false positive, caused by sporadic lead contamination at the laboratory during analysis, not contamination of the product itself. Follow up testing confirmed no elevated levels of lead were present in any of the products tested.
FSIS has therefore concluded that the product does not pose a public health concern.
Health Officials Warn Texans Not to Eat Great Value Dinosaur-Shaped Chicken Nuggets
April 2, 2026 - The Texas Department of State Health Services is warning people not to eat Great Value brand frozen dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets with a best by date of Feb. 10, 2027. The chicken nuggets, sold in 29-ounce bags and distributed through Walmart stores nationwide, are the subject of a US Department of Agriculture health alert issued Wednesday because they may be contaminated with a high level of lead.
According to the alert, the potentially harmful level of lead in the chicken nuggets was detected by routine public health sampling. There is no safe level of lead in food, and exposure to lead presents the greatest risk to children under six years of age and women who are pregnant or may become pregnant. More information on the risks of lead exposure is available at dshs.texas.gov/lead.
The affected packages have been pulled from stores, but consumers may still have them in their freezers. People who still have bags of these chicken nuggets should not eat them and should either throw them away or return them to the store where they were purchased.
Photos of the packaging are available via the USDA at https://www.fsis.usda.gov/sites/default/files/food_label_pdf/2026-04/PHA-04012026-01.pdf. They show a best buy date of “FEB 10 2027,” lot code “0416DPO1215” and establishment number “P44164.”
Texans can keep tabs on food recalls and alerts that affect Texas by visiting the DSHS food alerts and recalls page at dshs.texas.gov/food-manufacturers-wholesalers-warehouses/food-alerts-recalls-affecting-texas.
