Children (and adults) everywhere, including those in the Pittsburgh area, will have to forego breakfast staple Kellogg Recalls Mini-Wheats for a bit. The cereal has been recalled due to the possibility that pieces of metal could be found in the boxes. It is fair to say that most who enjoy eating the cereal are probably not looking for a "prize" like that.

Kellogg Co. indicated that 2.8 million boxes of not only the frosted variety of the bite sized cereal, but also the unfrosted could be defective and are included in the recall. Many of those boxes are being pulled from grocery store shelves. The source of the metal that is potentially in the boxes is apparently from mesh.

Once all is said and done, the recall could cost the business a total of $30 million to complete.

It is not clear if anyone has been injured by the metal in the breakfast cereal. As one could imagine, the potential injuries tied to ingesting such an object could be severe. Because the recovery could be painful and long lasting, in some cases permanent, in these situations it is often vital that injured parties seek legal counsel. Doing so could result in the filing of a products liability lawsuit.

A products liability civil lawsuit could be appropriate any time a product purchased and used by a consumer leads to an injury of some sort. Because the possible inclusion of metal in the food in this case likely occurred while the cereal was being made or packaged, it would probably be considered a manufacturing defect. This would make its manufacturer, Kellogg, responsible for any damage that may have been inflicted by the defective product.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, "Kellogg Recalls Mini-Wheats," Bill Tomson and Paul Ziobro, Oct. 11, 2012