Over 5 Million Water Bottles Are Being Recalled from Costco, Walmart, and Target Due to Choking Hazard

updated Aug 29, 2019
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Credit: Contigo

Water bottles are typically a good thing to have on hand — they’re practical and keep you hydrated. Yet, when parts of the bottle fall off and can choke you? Not. So. Much.

Children in particular are especially susceptible, as they’ll put ANYTHING in their mouths, not knowing what it is of course, and there has been great concern over millions of Contigo water bottles from Walmart, Costco, and Target, where the spouts have been falling off and popping up in kids’ mouths. 5.7 million to be exact. That’s right — a whopping 5.7 MILLION. So, there’s been a recall on all 5.7 million of these products, for fear that kids will choke on the missing parts. 

The spouts are made of silicone and are small enough where they could be a choking hazard, Contigo says. And there were 149 reports thus far of the spouts detaching in general from the bottle, as well as 18 reports where the spouts ended up in children’s mouths. “These water bottles can definitely look like toys for kids and the small parts are definitely a hazard,” adds Maggie Michalczyk, MS, RD. “Kids are curious and once a part becomes loose it can definitely be scary if they happen to put them in their mouth,” she says. 

These bottles were sold within the range of $9 and $24 at stores nationwide and online from April 2018 through June 2019, so if you bought a bottle that fell into this time frame, you might want to swap it for a brand new one before keeping it close to your child.

Though, color matters too, so you might be in the clear.  These “Contigo Kids Cleanable” water bottles come in three sizes, 13 ounces, 14 ounces, and 20 ounces, but the recall is only for the bottles with a black-colored spout base and cover. So, if yours was a different color, you’re safe to use it for now. If yours is affected by the recall, you can contact Contigo for inspection instructions and get a free replacement lid, no problem.