According to a press release, the Department of Agriculture of the United States has issued a recall order for "approximately 4,530 pounds of chicken nuggets products" made by Perdue Foods LLC for Applegate Farms.

The USDA claimed that the chicken nuggets "may be contaminated with extraneous plastic materials." This was the result of the investigation made by the USDA with the help of the Inspection Service (FSIS).

The agency stated that the questionable food products were the Applegate Naturals Chicken Nuggets which have a production date of Sept. 28, 2015.

Recall of the concerned food items were done by Perdue Food LLC after consumers complained about the small, hard plastic inside the packages of the chicken nuggets.

Almost 9,000 chicken nugget packages were delivered to local distribution centers in New York, Massachusetts, Indiana, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Florida and Texas according to Applegate. All shipments were tracked by the company and it has alerted all distributors and retailers about the recall.

The plastic-contaminated packages were in 8 oz. boxes which contain around 18 pieces of chicken nuggets and a 'best before date' of Sept. 27, 2016. There is also an establishment number of "P-2617" inside the inspection mark of the USDA.

So far, there were no reports yet of people being sick or injured due to the consumption of the contaminated food items. There were no other Applegate products affected by USDA recall order according to the food manufacturer.

Consumers who have already bought the questionable food products are urged not to consume them but to throw them away instead or return them to where they bought the items.

Perdue Foods LLC, a Salisbury, Maryland company, is a subsidiary of Perdue Farms. It is a major meat processor in the United States. Its food products include chicken, turkey and pork meats. Perdue Farms is also among the top grain companies in the U.S. with annual sales of more than $6 billion.