Hy-Vee announced on Jan. 12 a voluntary recall of several candy products because of potential contamination with Salmonella. Much of the candy is marketed as “almond bark,” and commonly used as chocolate coating for fruit, nuts and snack products.

The candy was made by wholesale producer Palmer Candy Company. It notified Hy-Vee that a milk powder ingredient used in some of its foods may be contaminated by Salmonella, a bacterial infection of the intestinal tract. The milk powder was supplied by Valley Milk Products, which recalled that ingredient on Dec. 9.

Salmonella is a bacteria that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain 12 to 72 hours after infection. The illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days, and most persons recover without treatment. However, in some persons, the diarrhea may be so severe that the patient needs to be hospitalized.

To date, no illnesses have been reported in connection with these products.

The Hy-Vee recall includes the Palmer candy products produced between Oct. 20 and Dec. 9. They were distributed to all of Hy-Vee’s 242 grocery stores across its eight-state region of Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin.

The product comes in a plastic container with a clear lid. The sell-by date range for all items is between Jan. 26, 2017 and Feb. 23, 2017. The sell-by date can be found at the top of the product label. Customers who purchased this product should dispose of it or return it to their local Hy-Vee store for a full refund.

Consumers may contact Hy-Vee 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 800-772-4098. Additional information is available on the Hy-Vee website and the website of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The recalled products may be identified using the following description and UPC number on the label of each candy tray that is being recalled.