SLR Food Distribution Inc., based in Hicksville, New York, is recalling Wise Wife Brand Ground Cinnamon because a sample tested by the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station showed elevated lead. The company announced the recall on October 29, 2026, and no illnesses had been reported.
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The product is a 110 gram (3.88 ounce) clear plastic container with a black screw-top cap, printed with UPC 0688474302754 and a best-before date of 4/25/2027. The notice lists no lot number, so those two printed codes are what shoppers match.
According to the recall notice on the FDA website, retailers and grocers in Connecticut, Indiana, Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin received the cinnamon between September 8, 2025, and June 28, 2026. That is 14 states, spread from the Northeast through the Midwest and down to Texas. Retailers were told to stop selling it, pull it from shelves and hold remaining inventory. Consumers are told not to eat or use the spice and either to discard it or return it to the store for a full refund.
The sales window runs from September 8, 2025, to June 28, 2026, so a container bought months ago could still be sitting in a pantry. With a best-before date of April 25, 2027, a jar of ground cinnamon can stay in use well past the recall announcement, and the notice offers no way to identify affected jars other than the printed UPC and date. The media contact named in the notice is Angela Liu, the company office manager, at the same phone number given for consumers.
A separate recall from the Lior brand cinnamon in September
Morning Overview has covered ground cinnamon and lead before, and the October 29 notice is a different event from those. The September 25, 2026, recall involved a different brand, Lior, distributed by Galil Importing Corp. in 90 gram plastic containers under lot number 794711005484, with sales in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas, Florida and Illinois, according to local station reporting on that notice. That is six states and a different company.
The two recalls arrived about five weeks apart, one in late September and one at the end of October, which may explain why shoppers searching for lead and cinnamon find both. The firms, brands, package sizes, UPCs and state lists differ, and nothing in either notice links one to the other.
The Wise Wife name has appeared on an FDA recall list before, which adds a wrinkle. An earlier SLR notice covered a 1.76 ounce (50 gram) Wise Wife jar with a different UPC, 0 688474 302853, sold in New Jersey, New York, Florida, Maryland, Minnesota, Oklahoma and Ohio from February 15, 2024, to June 28, 2025. The FDA page marks that recall completed and terminated. The new notice covers a larger 110 gram container, a later sales window and a longer state list.
Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station testing and what lead does
The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station is a state laboratory, and its analysis of retail spice samples has produced earlier FDA cinnamon notices. A 2024 report from FOX 5 New York described the station finding elevated lead in ALB Flavor Cinnamon Powder, which led to that product being recalled. The Wise Wife notice does not give a measured concentration, so the size of the exceedance is not public.
The notice quotes the company saying increased blood lead levels may be the only apparent sign of lead exposure. It adds that short-term exposure at very low levels may cause no symptoms and that prolonged exposure in children can cause lasting harm to the central nervous system, including learning and developmental problems. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says no safe blood lead level has been identified in children, and a blood lead test is the best way to learn whether a child has been exposed.
FDA lead policy and the open question about the source
The Food and Drug Administration states on its lead page that “Because there is no known safe level of exposure to lead, the FDA monitors and regulates levels of lead in foods.” The agency also describes its lead guidance for food and supplements, including an interim reference level for children of 2.2 micrograms per day. A spice used by the teaspoon is a small daily dose, but families who bake through the holidays may use a container quickly.
What remains unanswered is where the lead came from. The notice does not say whether the contamination traces to the cinnamon itself, to processing or to something added, and SLR has not published a test value. Anyone with a container from the listed states can reach the company at 1-516-437-3782, weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by Morning Overview editors prior to publication.
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