Many parents turn to fruit pouches whenever their children ask for a quick snack. These travel-friendly, resealable snacks are made from fruit purees designed to take the edge off your child’s hunger in a pinch.
They come in eye-catching and attractive packaging and are sweetened to suit kids’ flavor preferences.
But fruit pouches aren’t as great as they seem to be. Aside from being an inferior substitute for real fruits and fresh fruit juices, these seemingly harmless snacks can mess up your child’s health, as they are found to be contaminated with extremely high levels of lead.
FDA recalls three brands of fruit pouches due to lead contamination
In October 2023, the FDA warned parents and guardians to avoid buying WanaBana apple cinnamon fruit puree pouches, after it was discovered that the snacks contained high levels of lead.
“Parents and caregivers of toddlers and young children who may have consumed WanaBana apple cinnamon fruit puree pouches should contact their child’s healthcare provider about getting a blood test.
“Lead is toxic to humans and can affect people of any age or health status. Protecting children from exposure to lead is important to lifelong good health.”
Healthy Holistic Living reported that at least seven cases of severe lead poisoning linked to these fruit pouches were identified in more than five states, including Arizona, Louisiana, Maryland, Missouri and North Carolina.
WanaBana then voluntarily recalled their fruit puree pouches, which were sold in grocery chains like Dollar Tree as well as online retailers like Amazon.
Following these findings, the FDA also issued a recall for two more brands of fruit pouches — Schnucks cinnamon-flavored applesauce pouches and variety pack, and Weis cinnamon applesauce pouches.
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