Shoppers in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania who buy smoked fish loose from a refrigerated case should check the fridge. Haifa Smoked Fish has recalled about 560 pounds of unbranded Cold Smoked Sprats over a risk of botulism.
The recall, posted by the Food and Drug Administration on October 27, 2026, covers all lots, and the maker first declined to pull the fish when the agency asked.
What Was Recalled
According to the FDA recall notice, D&M Smoked Fish Inc., doing business as Haifa Smoked Fish Inc. of Queens, New York, is recalling about 560 pounds of cold smoked sprat fish. The product carries no brand name.
The fish were sold loose in bulk cardboard boxes labeled “Cold Smoked Sprats” and shipped refrigerated. The notice says all lots are included in the recall and lists no specific lot codes or dates, so a shopper cannot narrow the check to a particular batch.
Retail stores in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania received the fish, the notice says. Because the product was sold in bulk, there may be no printed package at home to check, so shoppers who bought smoked sprats from a store case in those states should look at what is in the refrigerator.
Why the FDA Acted
The agency said it inspected the company’s facility in Jamaica, New York, and found the firm was producing cold-smoked sprats without the required food safety controls to prevent Clostridium botulinum growth and toxin formation. The notice says the bacterium “can cause life-threatening illness.”
No illnesses have been reported to date, according to the notice. That is the status as of the FDA posting, and the recall was issued as a precaution tied to the inspection findings.
Food Safety News reported on October 23 that the agency had recommended the firm recall all cold smoked sprats on the market, and that the company declined. The warning also told retailers, restaurants, wholesalers and food service operators not to sell or serve the sprats. The recall followed four days later.
What Shoppers Should Do
The FDA’s advice is short. Shoppers should not eat the product, even if it does not look or smell spoiled, and should return it to the place of purchase for a full refund. Shoppers who want to compare store options for staples may find Frenzhub’s foods to never buy at Walmart a useful read. Anyone with questions can call the company at 718-523-8899, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Eastern time.
For anyone unsure whether a fish came from Haifa Smoked Fish, Food Safety News says to contact the place of purchase or the supplier. The same article advises that anyone who ate the product and has symptoms linked to botulism should seek medical attention immediately, and the FDA notice carries the same instruction.
The advice about looks and smell matters. Wikipedia’s botulism entry notes that some toxin types cause no strong odor, so contaminated food can seem normal. A quick check of the refrigerator is a better test than a sniff of the fish. Households that keep a stocked pantry, like those in this list of food items worth keeping on hand, can rely on shelf-stable backups while a recalled item is out of the rotation.
Safe storage matters at home too. Readers who want a refresher can look at Frenzhub’s guide to avoiding food poisoning from rice, which covers another everyday food that needs careful storage, and its list of essential items to store in the refrigerator. A related guide on things never to do with a full freezer when the power goes out shows how closely fridge and freezer habits are tied to food safety.
Why Cold-Smoked Fish Needs Extra Care
Wikipedia’s smoked fish entry defines cold smoking as smoking at low temperatures, typically 28 to 32 degrees Celsius, or roughly 82 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit. It says the process does not cook the flesh, and that cold-smoked fish does not eliminate food pathogens, so it must be kept refrigerated until eaten.
Wikipedia’s botulism entry lists smoked fish held at too high a temperature among the foods tied to the risk, alongside improperly pickled, home-canned and fermented fish. It adds that the toxin forms in low-oxygen conditions when spores germinate in food.
A Small Fish With a Long Smoked Tradition
Sprats are small, oily forage fish that travel in large schools, according to Wikipedia’s sprat entry. The European sprat commonly reaches about 12 centimeters, or close to 5 inches, and the entry says it is commonly smoked and preserved in oil in Northern Europe.
The fish also turns up sold as other small fish. The entry notes that sprats are sometimes marketed as anchovies or sardines, which is one reason shoppers may not always know exactly what they bought from a bulk case.
A Few Habits That Make Recall Checks Easier
Bulk foods are the hardest to trace after a recall, because there is no box or label at home. Keeping the receipt, or snapping a photo of the case label, gives shoppers something to match against a notice later. Writing the purchase date on a container of loose deli items does the same job and takes a few seconds.
With an unbranded product, the store name and the date of purchase are the main clues. The full FDA notice remains the best place to confirm the details, including the product description, the states where it was sold and the contact number, before anything is thrown out or returned.
This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
Image: SpecialAdviser – CC BY-SA 3.0/Wikimedia Commons
