A pepper and sauce packing company based in American Canyon issued a voluntary recall after a video on social media appeared to show a dead rodent inside one of its peperoncini jars.
G. L. Mezzetta Inc. on Sept. 26 recalled a single lot of 32-ounce jars of Golden Greek Peperoncini Medium Heat, after a woman identified as Tiffany on TikTok shared a video holding a jar which appeared to contain a dead rodent.
“Public service announcement. Don’t buy this brand of peperoncini. I have a dead mouse in mine,” she said.
The Sept. 17 TikTok post had more than 46,000 likes and 7,400 shares as of Tuesday. Mezzetta published an announcement on the Food and Drug Administration website stating that it has contacted the consumer and is conducting an investigation.
The company in the recall announcement acknowledged the video circulating on social media, saying “At this time, we have received no reports of illness or injury.”
The recall applies to the product with the stock keeping unit (SKU) 10106328 and lot 720106. The company’s notice said customers who purchased the product should avoid eating it and contact Mezzetta at CustomerSupport@Mezzetta.com.
The company said that it can identify where the product in this lot was distributed nationwide, including to customers in California, and that it has contacted customers who received it “to isolate and remove the affected product from sale.” However, when contacted Mezzetta did not specify which grocery stores or states are affected by the recall.
Mezzetta said in its statement that it will examine the product and review its own production, sanitation and food-safety records. It said its quality management is audited under the Safe Quality Food program, a food safety and quality certification program “benchmarked by the Global Food Safety Initiative.”
A spokesperson said Tuesday that the company has been in “continuous communication and coordination with the FDA.” The FDA classified the recall as a Class II incident, where use of or exposure to a particular product may cause temporary or reversible adverse health consequences.
“The recall remains limited to one product from a single production lot,” the spokesperson added. “We’ve received confirmation that all impacted retailers have pulled the product from store shelves.”
The recalled peperoncini “have a mildly piquant, fruity flavor and are exclusively imported from the sun-drenched pepper farms in the Peloponnese peninsula of Greece,” the company says on its website.
Mezzetta, which started in San Francisco in 1935, is known for its pickled vegetables, including olives and peppers, as well as various sauces.
Courtesy: Cushman & Wakefield
An affiliate of Mediterranean specialty foods maker G.L. Mezzetta purchased this nearly 116,000-square-foot former Cartlidge & Browne and Purple Brands winery at 205 Jim Oswalt Way, American Canyon, Napa Valley, on April 30, 2025, for $18 million. (Courtesy: Cushman & Wakefield)
After relocating production to Sonoma in 1979 and then to American Canyon in 1997, Mezzetta in 2025 expanded its capacity by purchasing the former Cartlidge & Browne and Purple Brands winery for $18 million. It also has offices in Larkspur.
Staff Writer Natalie Hanson reports on business and agriculture for The Press Democrat. She can be reached at natalie.hanson@pressdemocrat.com or at 619-665-5887.
