Baby Food Sold at Target Has Been Recalled Due to High Levels of Lead
Check your pantry: More than 25,000 containers of Good & Gather baby purée sold at Target are under recall
If you’ve recently bought baby food at Target, it’s worth checking your pantry: More than 25,000 units of Good & Gather Baby Pea, Zucchini, Kale & Thyme Vegetable Purée are being recalled for elevated levels of lead. The shelf-stable containers are sold as 4-ounce tubs, and this is currently the only flavor of Good & Gather baby food purées being recalled.
Good & Gather is a Target store brand, and the product was sold nationwide at Target stores. The Food and Drug Administration has since labeled the recall a Class II event, which means that use of or exposure to this product “may cause temporary or medically reversible adverse health consequences,” but the probability of serious health impacts is low.
Target Baby Food Recall Details
The FDA notice (Recall Number: F-0693-2025) specifies that 25,600 units across two lots have been recalled. Check your pantry for any Good & Gather Baby Pea, Zucchini, Kale & Thyme Vegetable Purée containers with the following information printed on the package:
- Lot Number: 4169; Best by date: Dec 09 2025
- Lot Number: 4167; Best by date: Dec 07 2025
If you have any product that matches the lot number and best-by dates listed above, do not use the baby food or offer it to your child. If you’re concerned about possible lead exposure in your child, your best next step is to reach out to your pediatrician, who can offer more information about testing.
What to Know About Lead in Baby Food
As a naturally occurring element, lead is present throughout our food supply from both natural and human-made sources. Recently, there’s been increased focus on identifying and removing it from baby food and infant formula. CR’s recent examination of contaminants in infant formula found lead in many—but crucially, not all—of the 41 infant formulas tested.
Lead in baby food and formula is difficult to avoid—studies have shown it’s present in both store-bought and homemade purées. But CR experts and health experts agree that manufacturers and regulatory agencies can do more to remove it in an effort to reduce exposure in our most vulnerable populations.
The amount of lead present in the recalled Good & Gather purée is not listed, though the FDA recently proposed new guidelines to set action levels of 10 parts per billion (ppb) for lead in fruits, most vegetables, and mixed meals (including grain and meat-based mixtures), and a level of 20 ppb for dry cereals and single-ingredient root vegetable purées, like carrots and sweet potatoes, which tend to absorb more lead from soil.
Because even small amounts of lead can have negative impacts on child health and development, Consumer Reports has urged the FDA to set a goal of having no measurable amounts of any heavy metal, including lead, in children’s food, after our own testing in 2018 found lead, arsenic, and cadmium in some popular brands of baby food.
As of Jan. 1, 2025, a new law known as The Baby Food Safety Act of California (AB 899) requires baby food manufacturers to test each product they sell in the state of California for heavy metal toxins such as lead, mercury, cadmium, and arsenic at least once a month, though infant formula is exempt.
Manufacturers must share these results with the California State Department of Public Health, and they must also communicate these test results to the public through QR codes linking to test results on product labels, as well as on their company website.
While the law applies only in California, it’s unlikely that baby food companies would create separate product labels for a single state. And no matter where you live or shop, you can access the test results on company websites.
It’s possible to look up the heavy metal testing results from Good & Gather products on the site tg.traceabilitybabyfood.com, but the lot numbers included in the recall aren’t listed in the system. CR’s director of food policy, Brian Ronholm, recently called on Target to comply more fully with the CA law and make it easier for consumers to access the testing information.
“We will be monitoring how companies comply with the law and ensure that consumers can access this information before they go shopping. Companies should be transparent with the information on their websites, so consumers don’t have to jump through several hoops to find it,” says Ronholm.
