Hundreds Of Food Products Sold In Minnesota Recalled Due To Bird + Rodent Waste Contamination

A Minnesota distributor is at the center of a recall of hundreds of products that include both human and pet foods, cosmetics, and more.

The FDA published a recall at the end of 2025 for a number of products that may have been contaminated with rodent and bird waste, in what the agency calls "insanitary conditions" at the Twin Cities distribution facility in question.

Gold Star Distribution, Inc. in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is recalling all of the FDA-regulated products listed in this press release, warning that people who handle or consume the affected products could become seriously ill due to "adulteration from pests, including rodents, birds, and insects.

The FDA says the conditions at this facility led to contamination from the presence of "rodent excreta, rodent urine, and bird droppings in areas where medical devices, drugs, human food, pet food, and cosmetic products were held."

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The products stored in these insanitary conditions could have become contaminated through contact, with Salmonella and other infections being the key concern.

The expansive list of recalled products from this facility includes food items like Skittles, Cheerios, Special K, Pringles, and Ortega taco shells. Health and medical items like Rollaids, Motrin, and Pepto Bismol, and pet foods like Purina Puppy Chow, Fancy Feast Cat Food, and Friskies cat food were among the items distributed from this facility that may have been contaminated.

The recall impacts products sold at stores in three states served by this facility, including Minnesota, North Dakota, and Indiana. A vast majority of the stores identified are located in Minnesota, with most of them in the Twin Cities metro area, as well as St. Cloud and Rochester, Minnesota.

The list of retailers impacted by this recall (seen here) includes what appear to be smaller retailers, and does not appear to include larger grocery and retail chains.

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As of today, no illnesses have been reported due to this recall, according to the FDA. For more information, you can see the full FDA press release, including impacted retailers here, and the full list of impacted products here.