Check your cupboard! This snack is an E. coli risk

If you enjoy the outdoors or an occasional hike, you will likely pack a few snacks for the trail. Tap or click here for five 5 health tests you can take online. There is nothing worse than trying to enjoy the peaceful nature with your stomach grumbling. But before you head out again, check your cupboard.

A protein bar from Built Brands is being voluntarily recalled as a routine inspection showed traces of the dangerous Escherichia coli bacteria. More commonly known as E. coli, some strains can have severe medical implications.

Read on for everything you need to know about the recall and what you can do about it.

Here’s the backstory

Utah-based Built Brands manufactures various protein bars sold around the country. It is common for food producers to routinely check that their products comply with all the necessary regulations.

It was through one such test that the E. coli bacteria was discovered, conducted by an accredited third-party laboratory at the request of Built Brands. As a result, the product facing the recall is:

  • Built Bar Banana Cream Pie Puffs protein bar

You can buy it in a 40-gram package marked with lot# D22151011 on the outside of the wrapper. A total of 4,196 individual bars make up the recall, while Built Brands sent 1,049 bars to customers through mail orders.

Built Bars recall
Credit: Built Brand

What you can do about it

According to the recall notice, nobody has reported any illnesses so far. However, the FDA urges people to check their cupboards for the bars and not consume them.

Next, contact the company at questions@built.com for a full refund or replacement. You can also call Built Brands at 801-845-2991 between 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, MST.

Continue reading

Catch a movie this summer at one of Walmart's new drive-in theaters

(Updated Aug. 7 – Scroll to the bottom of this article for a list of upcoming movies and locations.)

An unfortunate side-effect of the COVID-19 pandemic has been the untimely demise of movie theaters as we know them. For months, theaters have shuttered their doors, and the much-needed distractions we depend on from Hollywood have been out of our lives — with some upcoming features delayed indefinitely.

Continue reading

Swap these disposables for reusables

  • Forget plastic baggies — swap in these reusable silicone zipper bags for sandwiches and snacks. Pro tip: Flip ‘em inside out and wash them on the top rack of your dishwasher.
  • Beeswax wrap is organic cotton coated in beeswax — and it’s 100 times less annoying than plastic wrap. Reuse it for up to a year. 
  • Drop the single-use paper towels and replace them with these cotton cloths.
  • These colorful silicone straws come with a travel case — pop them in your bag and leave the soggy paper ones behind.
  • Fill these reusable cups with medium-ground coffee and keep the convenience of a K-Cup — without the trash.

We may receive a commission when you buy through our links, but our reporting and recommendations are always independent and objective.