HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — A food safety alert issued in the continental U.S. for Spam Classic has local public health officials cautioning island residents to double-check the label before consuming the popular canned meat product.
The Guam Department of Public Health and Social Services, out of an abundance of caution, urged residents who purchased Spam Classic canned meat not to consume the product if the label contained the following:
- An Establishment number EST. 199 inside the USDA mark of inspection.
- A Best Buy AUG 2026 date.
- A lot code A08173 located on the bottom of the can.
“According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service, FSIS, on Aug. 17, 2023, Hormel Foods Corp. Services, LLC, who produced the canned meat reported the product was shipped without being adequately processed to reach commercial sterility,” Public Health said in a press release.
The USDA described commercial sterility as “the state of the canned food not containing pathogenic microorganisms after having undergone an appropriate amount of heat sterilization and also not containing non-pathogenic that can breed in them under normal temperatures.”
While the FSIS said the affected product was shipped only to retail locations in Texas and not other retail locations, local Public Health officials still advised Guam consumers to check Spam labels before consuming the product.
As of Sept. 20, Public Health had not received reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of the product.
A view of Day Buy Day’s sizable Spam selection on the shelves of the Piti supermarket is seen Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023.
