Big Plant Milk Recall Expanded: Protein Shakes, Coffee Drinks, Pretzel Buns and More

Some drinks made by Lyons Magnus, a food and beverage manufacturer, were recalled within the last couple of weeks. A variety of plant milks, protein shakes and coffee drinks sold by different brands have been pulled from store shelves. On Tuesday, the company expanded the recall to include more products in an update posted to the US Food and Drug Administration’s website.

The reason for the recall, according to the FDA and Lyons Magnus, is that the products “did not meet commercial sterility specifications.” They could potentially be contaminated with organisms, including the one that causes botulism, according to Lyons Magnus and the FDA. 

King’s Hawaiian, the only food product that’s been included in this recall so far, announced it’s recalling its pretzel bread, including its pretzel hamburger buns, pretzel slider buns and pretzel bites “out of an abundance of caution” because they use a Lyons Magnus ingredient affected in the larger beverage recall. 

No other breads or buns sold by King’s Hawaiian have been impacted, the company said. But if you have any King’s Hawaiian pretzel bread, you should throw it away and contact King’s Hawaiian to request a replacement. 

The specific organisms that the impacted items could be contaminated with are cronobacter sakazakii and clostridium botulinum. Cronobacter infections are rare and may cause fever, vomiting or urinary tract infections. But cronobacter can be dangerous or life-threatening for babies, older adults and people with weakened immune systems. 

Clostridium botulinum can cause botulism, a rare but very serious illness that can damage the body’s nerves and lead to complications, including death. Though clostridium botulinum hasn’t been found in the beverages being recalled, consumers should throw away any impacted product regardless of whether it looks or smells spoiled, the FDA and Lyons Magnus said in the announcement.

A few more specific beverages, like lactation smoothies, were also recalled. Here’s what to know if you’re a plant-milk drinker, a protein-shake haver or are otherwise interested in learning more about the brands that have recalls, as well as a few alternatives to your currently unavailable favorite drink. 

Which brands were recalled?

Similar to many other food or drink recalls, not every drink made by an affected brand is being recalled. Some batches with a certain expiration date might be fine, for example, as may all lots of a totally different drink by the same brand. If you recognize any of the brands or drinks on the following list, check the recall for a complete description of the specific lot codes, UPC numbers and expiration dates of the recalled products. King’s Hawaiian, on the other hand, appears to be recalling all of its pretzel bread, but you can check the list of specific lot codes here. 

Some lots of the following coffee drinks, protein shakes, plant milks and other beverages are being recalled:

• Lyons Barista Style (Sweet Cream Frappe Base in 32-ounce cartons; Almond, Oat, Soy and Coconut Non-Dairy Beverages in 32-ounce cartons).
• Lyons Ready Care (Thickened Dairy Drink in different consistencies, 32- and 8-ounce cartons; 2.0 High Calorie High Protein drinks in vanilla, chocolate and butter pecan flavors in 8- or 32-ounce cartons; 0 Sugar Added 1.7 High Calorie High Protein Nutritional Drink in vanilla flavor in 32-ounce cartons; Plant-Based Protein Shake in vanilla or chocolate in 8.45-ounce cartons).
• Cafe Grumpy (Ready to Drink Cold Brew Coffee, 11 ounces).
• Tone It Up (Plant-Based Protein Shake in vanilla and chocolate, 11 ounces).
• Uproot (Oatmilk Organic Oats and Peamilk Chocolate in 8-ounce cartons).
• Organic Valley (organic whole milk and organic 1% Milkfat Lowfat milks, regular and chocolate-flavored in 8-ounce cartons).
• Salted (Complete Keto Meal Shake Chocolate Flavor in 11-ounce cartons).
• Rejuvenate (Muscle Health+ Vanilla and Muscle Health+ Chocolate, 11 ounces).
• Optimum Nutrition (Gold Standard 100% Whey in chocolate and vanilla, 11-ounce cartons).
• Sweetie Pie Organics (Organic Lactation Smoothie Mango Banana, Organic Lactation Smoothie Apple Pear, 11.1 ounces). 
• Ensure Harvest (1.2 Cal for Tube Feeding in 8-ounce cartons).
• PediaSure Harvest (1.0 Cal for Tube Feeding in 8-ounce cartons).
• Lyons Barista Style (almond, coconut and oat milk in 32-ounce cartons).
• Pirq (Plant Protein 32-milliliter cartons sold in vanilla, chocolate, caramel coffee and strawberry flavors).
• Glucerna Original (8-ounce chocolate, strawberry and vanilla cartons sold in 24-count cases).
• Aloha (chocolate sea salt, coconut, vanilla and iced coffee plant-based protein cartons).
• Intelligentsia (ColdCoffee and Oat Latte 330-milliliter cartons).
• Kate Farms (Pediatric Peptide 1.0 Vanilla, Standard 1.0 Vanilla, Nutrition Shake Coffee, Nutrition Shake Vanilla, Nutrition Shake Chocolate, Standard 1.4 Plain, Peptide 1.5 Plain, Pediatric Standard 1.2 Vanilla, Pediatric Peptide 1.5 Vanilla, different carton sizes).
• Oatly (Barista Edition oat milk in 32-ounce cartons; Barista Edition 11 ounces; Oat-Milk 11 ounces; Oat-Milk Chocolate 11 ounces).
• Premier Protein (chocolate, vanilla, cafe latte 330-milliliter cartons).
• MRE (cookies and cream, milk chocolate, salted caramel and vanilla milkshake 330-milliliter protein shakes).
• Stumptown (cold brew coffee in 325 milliliter cartons in oat milk Original, oat milk Horchata, oat milk Chocolate, chocolate Cream & Sugar and original Cream & Sugar flavors).
• Imperial (Med Plus 2.0 Vanilla Nutritional Drink, Med Plus NSA 1.7 Vanilla Nutritional Drink, Med Plus 2.0 Butter Pecan Nutritional Drink and Thickened Dairy Drink in different consistencies).
• King’s Hawaiian (Pretzel Slider Buns, Pretzel Hamburger Buns and Pretzel Bites). 

Recalled oat milk in the fridge? Try this instead. 

As a refresher, not every lot or type of drink made by a brand is unsafe or risky to drink. Oatly has a variety of products still available for sale on its website. The impacted products are limited to the Barista Edition Oatmilk and the 11-ounce Barista Edition, Original and Chocolate Oatmilks. To see whether yours is recalled, Oatly says the easiest way to check is to look for the initials “LM” next to the package’s best-by date.

But if you’re a stone-cold oat milk drinker wanted to branch out into a different brand, we recommend Planet Oat. It’s affordable, tastes good and you can order a six-pack of the 32-ounce cartons of the “original” or $42 when you order through Walmart. You can also use the Planet Oat store locator to find some near you. 

Recalled cold brew? 

Once again, not every product made by the brands listed in the recall have been impacted, and most will still have a variety of options available and safe to drink. Cafe Grumpy released a statement and reiterated that it no longer works with Lyons Magnus for their cold brew drinks and only a couple lots of drinks set to expire at the end of this month are impacted. This is a similar case to most or all brands on this list. 

That being said, some single-serve cartons of cold brew coffee drinks were recalled. If you’re looking for a replacement to take on the go, we recommend mixing your own concoction at home using a standard cold brew like La Colombe, in addition to your favorite plant-based creamer. One of our favorites is Elmhurst Oat Milk Creamer.

Substitute for your protein shake

Premier Protein was another big name that saw some lots of products recalled — the impacted shakes also made CNET’s best list of protein shakes and powders. But fear not: Owyn, which CNET dubbed the best plant-based protein shake, is still available.

Read more: Plant Milks Ranked From Best to Worst

The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.