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Products are never recalled without a good reason. The following products were pulled from the shelves because consumers lost their lives. From bad cars to tainted medicine, these are some of the deadliest product recalls in history.
Remember, it’s illegal to sell recalled products, even at a yard sale. Be a savvy shopper and stay informed about the safety of your purchases!
The year was 1978, and arguably one of the ugliest cars ever made was surprisingly popular. The Ford Pinto was a bestseller–but a design flaw made it a death trap in the event of a rear-end collision. More than 500 people may have died because of the Ford Pinto. Ford recalled 1.5 million vehicles, and the rest is history.
Listeria is a serious threat. That’s why we’ve been monitoring the current recall of mushrooms so closely. In 1985, 28 people died because of a soft cheese manufactured by Jalisco Mexican Products. In addition to the deaths, at least 20 women suffered miscarriages–a common danger with Listeria.
IKEA has been plagued with recalls of their MALM line of dressers. Why? Because they present the very real risk of tipping over and killing children. Eight kids have died, and IKEA is still announcing new recalls of unsafe furniture.
In 2007, Menu Foods was revealed to have caused almost 4500 animal deaths because of tainted foods. The manufacturer provided pet food for a number of brands. The food was contaminated with melamine and caused kidney failure in thousands of pets.
Mini hammocks were a popular trend in the 90s. These kid-sized backyard hammocks seemed like a cheap alternative to traditional hammocks, but there was a problem. Without spreader bars, the hammocks were essentially just big nets. Twelve kids died after getting tangled in them, and three million mini hammocks were recalled in 1996.
Herbal supplement Kratom is growing in popularity despite its risks. Often sold alongside CBD oil, Kratom has caused at least 44 deaths since 2011. The plant-based substance acts similarly to traditional opioids and presents many of the same dangers. In addition, a salmonella outbreak was tied to Kratom pills and teas, causing widespread illness and even death among users.
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In 1982, seven Chicago residents died after taking Tylenol. The case was never solved, but investigators think the pills were laced with cyanide at some point after they reached store shelves. Tylenol recalled their products, just in case, and launched a redesigned bottle with a tamper-proof cap.
