GRIF MAG

The FDA expanded a January 2025 frozen tater tot recall to about 648,000 pounds

NEED TO KNOW

• Products were distributed to foodservice clients, not retail stores, 28 states

• No injuries reported, but plastic fragments pose a choking risk

A recall of frozen tater tots over concerns about plastic contamination has expanded significantly, with federal officials now reporting that roughly 648,000 pounds of product are affected.

According to anupdated noticefrom the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued Tuesday, Feb. 10, the recall now includes more than 21,600 30-pound cases of bulk tater tots produced by McCain Foods in Idaho. The expanded action builds on anearlier voluntary recallannounced in January involving Ore-Ida Tater Tots and Sysco Imperial Potato Tater Barrels.

The FDA said the products may contain "clear, hard plastic fragments," which could pose choking hazards or cause mouth and throat injuries if consumed. So far, the agency has not reported any confirmed injuries linked to the recalled items.

MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty

Notably, the FDA clarified in its updated report that the affected products were distributed primarily to food service clients and were not sold in retail grocery stores, limiting potential exposure to the general public.

The newly expanded recall list includes 21,557 cases of Ore-Ida Tater Tots Shaped Potatoes (Item No. OIF00215A), packaged in clear, unlabeled poly bags containing six 5-pound bags per case, for a total net weight of 30 pounds per case. The UPC is 1 00 72714 00215 8. Additional batch codes now included are 1005475084, 1005476076, 1005477012 and 1005498350, with expanded use-by dates of E 20271006, E 20271007, E 20271008 and E 20271103.

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The updated recall also newly includes 67 cases of Sonic Tots (Item No. SON00543), also packaged in clear, unlabeled poly bags (six five-pound bags), with a 30-pound net weight per case. The UPC is 0 00 72714 00543 5, with batch code 1005486334 and production code B 292 / 5.

In total, the FDA said the products were distributed to vendors in 28 states, including Alaska, Arkansas, Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin.

Consumers or institutions seeking more information can visit the FDA's recall page or contact McCain Foods' customer service at 1 (877) 804-6198 for guidance on refunds or disposal.

The FDA continues to classify the recall as a Class II event, meaning exposure to the product may cause temporary or medically reversible health consequences, with the probability of serious adverse health effects considered unlikely.

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President Donald Trump's administration cannot force states to hand over detailed information on people who have applied for or received aid from theSupplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, a judge said in a tentative ruling Friday.

Food Aid-SNAP

San Francisco-based U.S. District Judge Maxine Chesney last yearblocked the U.S. Department of Agriculturefrom requiring states to provide the data, including on the immigration status of people who receive benefits and applicants, after 22 states sued over the policy.

The department kept pushing for it, telling states in December thatit would stop paying state administrative costsfor the program if they didn't comply. It also issued new protocols for securing the data, which the states rejected.

The federal government said the previous ruling did not apply to its latest demands.

Chesney said during a hearing Friday that she intends to issue an order that says the federal government cannot act on its letters to the states from last year.

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The Trump administration contends that the information is needed to stamp outfraud and waste, which it asserts is a major problem in the nation's biggest food aid program.

The states argued that the Agriculture Department could share the data with immigration enforcement authorities, which they say would be illegal.

SNAP is a major part of the U.S. social safety net, helping about 42 million Americans, about 1 in 8, buy groceries. People in the country illegally are not eligible for benefits.

Most states, including one that sued — Nevada — have complied with the federal government's request. Kansas has not complied, but also has not joined the lawsuit. All the states involved in the lawsuit, besides Nevada, have Democratic governors.

The administration has not released detailed information on the data submitted by states, but says it shows higher levels of fraud than previously believed.

The battle over SNAP records is one of several areas where the administration has sought tocut off some federal fundingto states led by Democrats, often in the name of preventing fraud.

A day after the US announced it took the unusual step of shuttering it's Drug Enforcement Administration office in the Dominican Republic — a key site in the agency's effort to combatdrug traffickingin the Caribbean — a top agent there was charged with running a visa fraud scheme.

US Ambassador Leah F. Campos announced on social media Thursday that she had closed the DEA's office, writing "It is a disgusting and disgraceful violation of public trust to use one's official capacity for personal gain."

"I will not tolerate even the perception of corruption anywhere in the Embassy I lead," Campos added.

The Justice Department announced Friday the charges against supervisory special agent Meliton Cordero, who the DOJ said in a press release was assigned to the US Embassy in the Dominican Republic for six years. Cordero was arrested Thursday.

Cordero is charged with conspiracy to commit bribery and visa fraud, according to the Justice Department. Prosecutors didn't ask that he be detained, but he was ordered to surrender his passport.

Prosecutors say Cordero accepted thousands of dollars in exchange for assisting foreign nationals with securing nonimmigrant visas that would allow them to visit the US for a temporary period.

"During his assignment at the U.S. Embassy in the Dominican Republic, Cordero expedited at least 119 visa applications, at least one of which is alleged to have been fraudulent, often coaching individuals in preparation for their visa interview with U.S. Consular Officers," the Justice Department said.

Charging documents against Cordero have not yet been unsealed in court records.

The US ambassador made the extraordinary move to shut down the DEA's office in the Dominican Republic in recent days, in response to the corruption probe,

The decision could hamper US anti-narcotics efforts in the region, which the Trump administration has cited as a high priority.

The office is a major base of operations for monitoring and cutting off traffickers using the Caribbean as a route to traffic cocaine from South America to Europe and the US.

The Dominican government has allowed the Defense Department to use its military facilities as part of a broader effort that includes military strikes on purported trafficking boats in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean.

"The temporary closure of the DEA office in Santo Domingo is to allow time for an investigation internal to this Embassy. The Dominican Republic remains a critical partner in our work to combat narco-terrorism throughout the region," the US embassy in the Dominican Republic said in a statement on X. "That work will continue at the same robust pace between the U.S. Embassy in Santo Domingo and our Dominican partners even as our internal investigation ensues."

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Avery Anna is ready to write a whole new chapter

NEED TO KNOW

• The rising country star is about to headline her Girl of Constant Sorrow Tour

• But first, she's releasing a new duet with Sam Barber

Avery Annahas built a career on turning her fans' heartbreak into songs. But now, on the cusp of aheadlining tourand a new duet with frequent collaboratorSam Barber, the country breakout star is ready to write a whole new chapter.

And this time, she's telling her own story.

"I'm ready to show everybody who I actually am," Anna, 21, tells PEOPLE ahead of the release of her and Barber's new duet, "Fear in God." She adds, laughing, "This new tour is going to be both emotional and catastrophic. That's my new descriptive word of the year."

Certainly, "catastrophic" is a bold word for a singer whose soft voice has long carried the heavy stories of others. In fact, it was those fans who helped form the backbone of her 2025 albumLet Go Letters. However, the music she's working on now might sound a whole lot different.

"The music that I'm doing this year is very Arizona inspired," says Anna, whose recent cover of the classic western song "My Rifle, My Pony and Me" points to the country roots she grew up on. "It's rooted in my family history. There's lots of different sounds and it's definitely more rocking than usual, which is super fun."

Indeed, Anna's cover of theOzzy Osbourneclassic "No More Tears" back in December 2025 raised eyebrows, with many having no clue that the talented artist could go and crush some of the driving song's highest notes.

"Everyone was surprised," admits Anna with a laugh. "This five foot four blonde girl was ripping some Ozzy Osbourne! I am my father's son sometimes. What can I say?"

It's a cover the young vocal powerhouse plans to rock out on during her upcoming Girl of Constant Sorrow Tour — named after Anna's emotional spin last year on the song "Girl of Constant Sorrow."

"Doing that cover lit a fire under me," says Anna, who is set to kick off the much-anticipated headlining tour in Cincinnati on March 12. "It showed me that I can really do whatever I want."

It also showed Anna that she had reached a point in her career — one that began with her viral hit "Narcissist" — where that she could take a chance and name her tour after a song that has played a "big part" in her life.

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"It was a really good way to describe what I've been going through in the past couple of years," says Anna. "Everyone feels sad at some point. Sorrow does not discriminate."

But Anna seems to be happier than ever these days — something that's apparent when she talks about her work with music collaborator Sam Barber.

"Me and Sam are so close," says Anna, who reached the Top 10 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart with her "best friend" Barber with their 2025 platinum-certified viral duet "Indigo." "He's one of the closest people in my life. He knows everything about my life, and we've been super good friends for a long time."

Chances are high Barber, 22, will join her for a few special tour dates as well.

"I don't really have to convince him," Anna tells PEOPLE of the "Straight and Narrow" hitmaker. "He's pretty supportive, so he'll be there."

Courtesy Warner Records Nashville

In fact, Anna admits that the two have even had some conversations about becoming a country music duo somewhere down the line.

"We definitely have (talked about that)," Anna says. "It works so well and it's so natural for me and him to write together and just to connect and click. We've written so many songs — I lose track of them. Hopefully in the future there'll be more to come."

And if she needs him, he will be there.

"He cares deeply for people," says Anna of Barber. "He definitely is always there for me."

Read the original article onPeople

Megan Thee Stallion/Instagram

NEED TO KNOW

• Megan Thee Stallion says she didn't expect to be in "super comfortable" in her relationship with Klay Thompson

• The rapper credits therapy and self-growth for opening her up to love

• She's balancing romance, fitness and business ventures with a "disciplined" 2026 focus

Megan Thee Stalliondidn't plan on entering her "Lover Girl" era — it found her.

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE tied to a new partnership with Dunkin', the three-time Grammy winner, 30, reflected on her relationship with Dallas Mavericks playerKlay Thompson, 36, and admitted she didn't see it coming.

"Well, I don't never want to tell [anybody] to just jump in a relationship just because everybody else got one, and I'm not going to tell you to just jump in a relationship because you have to," says the "HISS" rapper, who' made herred carpet debutwith Thompson on her arm in July 2025. "I didn't even know I was going to be in my relationship, to be honest."

Megan Thee Stallion/Instagram

Instead, Megan explains that love arrived after on time: when she shifted her focus inward and on her self-love and mental health.

"I think that because finally I started being in a better mind space about myself and my life, and I had already been doing a lot of work to heal me," she recalls. "I had been going to therapy, I had a bunch of activities that I started doing for myself; maybe God just opened up that space for me to have somebody that loved me right."

Now, she says, she's experiencing a new kind of ease.

"This is one of the first times that I've ever been just overly comfortable," Megan shares with her signature giggle: "I'm comfy, babe!"

The award-winning rapper-turned-entrepreneur and four-time NBA champion welcomed the world to their relationship at her Inaugural Pete & Thomas Foundation Gala in New York City. When asked about Thompson at the event, Megan spoke to PEOPLE at the time and called him the "nicest person I've ever met in my life."

Megan Thee Stallion/Instagram

Along with letting the hotties into her beautifully fllourishing relationship with Thompson, Megan has been vocal about her wellness journey, which also led to her partnership with Dunkin' for the launch of its new Protein Milk and Protein Refreshers, including her customMango Protein Refresher.

"To be honest, when I started my health and fitness journey, I just dove in," she says. "I didn't really know too much about the health side of working out, the nutrition side of it. So once I started figuring out, okay, girl, if you really want to see some results, some differences in your body when you're trying to get toned and all that good stuff, you need to be eating and drinking some protein."

View this post on Instagram

That mindset made teaming up with Dunkin' feel natural. She went on to say that once she started incorporating protein into daily fitness routine, she felt more confident to "tell the people a little bit about protein," calling the partnership "an easy layup."

Protein, she says, has been essential to staying energized for long days in both the studio and the gym — something she and Thompson reportedly bond over. The couple have been spotted working out together, and Megan has embraced what she calls her "gym and the studio" routine.

"I'll be in the gym and the studio, the gym and the studio," she says of her 2026 focus.

Still, Megan is clear that, unlike her many business ventures, including opening aPopeyes location in Miamiand lauching a tequila brand,Chicas Divertidas, love shouldn't be chased.

"I think people got to stop trying to be in love and trying to chase love," muses the star. "They just got to let it come to them. When it's meant for you, it's going to happen. God does not give you nothing that is not meant for you."

As she balances romance, business deals and new music on the way — "I'm definitely completing act three and the music is dropping this year," she teases, following her 2024 self-titled album and 2025'sHISS— Megan is entering 2026 with a simple mantra: "Disciplined."

Read the original article onPeople