Massive Coffee Recall at Costco, Walmart, and Target

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Late July 2025, New Mexico Piñon Coffee’s Dark Pinon K-Cup pods were found leaking ink into brewed coffee – a discovery throwing morning routines into disarray. The FDA on June 20 classified the voluntary recall as Class III (low risk) after confirming that food-grade printing ink could migrate through flawed pod seals during typical Keurig brewing.

The incident underscores a rare but serious quality lapse at New Mexico’s largest roaster.

With the global coffee market around $269 billion and millions of Americans relying on single-serve machines daily, even a single faulty lot can send ripples through the industry.

Meanwhile, it initially appeared the recall hit national retailers. Officially, NM Pinon says the affected Dark Pinon pods (lot 251749) were stocked only in select Albertsons (Smith’s) and Walmart stores in New Mexico and via its own online shop.

However, because the company’s website ships nationwide, pods from this one Albuquerque defect did reach consumers beyond state lines.

Industry observers note this incident highlights the interconnected nature of the $269 billion coffee distribution network: a single factory flaw in Albuquerque became a national talking point.

Even a limited recall of ~1,540 individual cups drew widespread attention, showing how modern supply chains magnify local problems.

Single-serve coffee has exploded in popularity. Since Keurig introduced K-Cups in 1998, single-cup formats have become a multi-billion-dollar segment of the market. NM Pinon Coffee’s story exemplifies that growth: the company began in 1994 when brothers John and Steve Bregar sold coffee from the back of a pickup truck.

Today, it is New Mexico’s largest roaster, moving roughly one million pounds of beans per year.

Its signature Dark Pinon blend – ground coffee infused with local piñon nuts – has won regional fans.

But scaling up from a truck-stop roaster to a national supplier strains production lines. As NM Pinon found, expanding distribution can turn small manufacturing mistakes into major recalls.

As coffee makers scale up, quality pressures mount. Recall statistics show the trend: since 2018, U.S. product recalls have surged about 115%, and consumer food recalls spiked by 33% in 2022.

Single-serve pods are particularly exacting to produce: each foil lid requires a flawless, clear-coat seal to keep grounds safely contained during a ~192°F brew.

In this case, the pods’ clear seal was misapplied, allowing the food-safe ink to run into the cup under brewing heat and pressure.

High-speed packaging lines leave little margin for error, so most beverage manufacturers now use automated vision systems and continuous monitoring to catch the tiny sealing defects that triggered NM Pinon’s recall.

On June 20, 2025, New Mexico Pinon Coffee issued a voluntary recall of its Dark Pinon Single-Serve 10-count pods (lot 251749, UPC 812361033081) after FDA testing confirmed ink could leach into brewed coffee from the defective pods.

No illnesses were reported, but the company acted out of “an abundance of caution.” President Matthew Bregar emphasized the move was precautionary: “At New Mexico Piñon Coffee, quality means everything to us… it didn’t meet the standard of excellence you’ve come to expect,” he said.

Affected consumers were told to discard or return any boxes bearing that lot code and best-by date.

The FDA designated the recall Class III (the lowest-risk classification), underscoring that exposure is “not likely to cause adverse health consequences.”

In New Mexico, the recall hit closest to home. NM Pinon confirms the Dark Pinon pods were on shelves “in almost every grocery store” across the state. Albuquerque-area consumers – near the CinFranky LLC roasting plant – are most likely to have bought them.

Grocery chains like Smith’s/Albertsons and other regional markets carried the product.

Locals who purchased Dark Pinon boxes should check for lot 251749 (best-by May 8, 2026) and dispose of or return any matching pods.

Notably, CinFranky (NM Pinon’s parent) roasts over one million pounds annually and even sponsors the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, underlining its local prominence. Residents with questions can call the company hotline at (505) 298‑1964 for information or refunds.

The NM Pinon recall fits into larger consumer safety trends. In Q1 2025, U.S. recalls surged to 775 incidents (a 25% increase over the prior year), with food & beverage up sharply.

Coffee remains a booming market: global demand is forecast to grow about 4.5% per year through 2034, driven by rising consumption worldwide.

High-profile ink scares like Nestlé’s 2005 baby-formula recall have led regulators to tighten rules – modern food-contact packaging must not allow any ink migration. Today, companies invest heavily in low-migration inks and automated seal-verification (such as AI-driven cameras) to catch even microscopic defects before products ship.