Great Value fruit cocktail is recalled in seven states over possible lead contamination

Pacific Coast Producers of Lodi, California, is recalling 1,836 cases of Great Value Fruit Cocktail in Fruit Juice from Concentrate, the 15-ounce cans sold under Walmart’s store brand, because of possible contamination with elevated levels of lead. The cans went to Alabama, Arizona, Louisiana, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wyoming. At 24 cans per case, the recall covers 44,064 cans in all. The FDA rates the problem in its middle recall tier, and no illness has been attached to it in the public record.

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Lot 6FCB 04 C2263 and how to read the can

The FDA enforcement report files the recall as H-0167-2027 under event 100125. The product is Great Value Fruit Cocktail in Fruit Juice from Concentrate, net weight 15 ounces (425 grams), UPC 078742369570, distributed by Walmart Inc. of Bentonville, Arkansas. The affected lot is 6FCB 04 C2263, stamped with a best-if-used-by date of Sept. 1, 2027. Only that lot is listed, so cans from other production runs carrying the same label are outside the recall.

Pacific Coast Producers began the recall on Oct. 1. The FDA classified it on Oct. 20, and the entry appeared in the Oct. 28 report. The agency lists it as a voluntary, firm-initiated action with an ongoing status. Its reason for recall reads, in full, potential contamination with elevated levels of lead; the entry gives no measured concentration.

Great Value is Walmart’s private label, and the record names Pacific Coast Producers as the recalling firm, so the lead question sits with the packer and its fruit supply. Walmart says the supplier is investigating the cause. Neither the FDA entry nor the Fox Business report spells out a refund or disposal instruction for shoppers, which leaves the lot code and the best-by date as the only identifiers on offer.

Seven states and a 44,064-can footprint

The distribution pattern in the record reads domestic only: AL, AZ, LA, NM, PA, WA and WY, with foreign distribution marked not applicable. In plain terms that is Alabama, Arizona, Louisiana, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wyoming. The spread runs from the Gulf South to the Mountain West, the Southwest, the Pacific Northwest and the mid-Atlantic.

Fox Business reported the same case count and state list and quoted a Walmart spokesperson saying that safety is a top priority. Walmart says it removed the affected cans from stores and blocked their sale at registers and online, and that the supplier is investigating the cause.

Timing deserves a look too. The recall began Oct. 1, and the public enforcement entry appeared 27 days later. Cans with a best-by date in September 2027 can sit in a pantry for many months, so a can bought before the removal could still be in a cupboard in any of those seven states.

A middle-tier rating and what the FDA says about lead

Under the FDA’s recall definitions, the middle tier covers a situation where exposure to a violative product may cause temporary or medically reversible health consequences, or where the probability of serious harm is remote. The top tier, by contrast, is reserved for a reasonable probability of serious harm or death. A lead recall landing in the middle tier means the agency judged a single can unlikely to do lasting damage.

Repeated exposure is the concern with lead, and the agency’s position on lead in food is that there is no known safe level of exposure. The most serious effects come during active brain development, and high exposure in infancy and early childhood can cause learning difficulties, behavior problems and lower IQ. The FDA calculated interim reference levels of 2.2 micrograms per day for children and 8.8 micrograms per day for females of childbearing age. For adults, chronic exposure is associated with kidney problems and high blood pressure.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention uses a blood lead reference value of 3.5 micrograms per deciliter to flag children above most of their peers, and says that value is a screening benchmark, not a safe threshold. Children under 6 are more likely to be exposed because of hand-to-mouth behavior. CDC estimates about 500,000 U.S. children are at or above that value from all sources combined.

The FDA page also notes that detecting lead does not by itself mean a food should be avoided, and recommends eating a variety of nutrient-dense foods to limit exposure from any single food. It points to a draft guidance, Action Levels for Lead in Juice, issued in April 2022, and to final guidance of January 2025 on lead in processed foods for babies and young children. The page does not list numeric levels, so the record does not show how this lot compared with any benchmark.

The record leaves two figures unanswered: the lead concentration found in the fruit cocktail, and the number of cans sold before Walmart blocked sales. Until the supplier’s investigation produces a cause, a shopper holding a can from lot 6FCB 04 C2263 has only the recall notice to go on.

This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by Morning Overview editors prior to publication.

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