FDA Classifies Six Intercon Hand Soaps as a Class II Recall
Nearly 2,700 cases of foaming hand soap distributed to 15 states carry a Class II recall label from the FDA after two of six products tested positive for five bacteria species tied to skin and bloodstream infections.
By Eli Okafor, Health & Wellness
· 3 min read · Updated
Key Takeaways
- •The FDA classified Intercon Chemical Co.'s recall of six hand soap products as Class II on September 11, 2026, more than two months after the company voluntarily pulled them on June 29.
- •Two of the six soaps tested positive for five bacteria species, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Serratia marcescens; the other four were recalled without a confirmed positive test.
- •Nearly 2,700 cases reached 20 wholesalers and retailers across 15 states, including Laura Lynn-branded soap sold through the Ingles Markets grocery chain.
- •No illnesses linked to the recall had been reported as of mid-September 2026, and the FDA's Class II designation reflects a remote chance of serious health consequences.
- •DermaRite Industries recalled four different soap and antiseptic products in August 2025 after finding a different bacteria, Burkholderia cepacia, showing bacterial contamination recalls in liquid soap are not a one-time event.
The Food and Drug Administration classified a recall of six hand soap products from Intercon Chemical Co. as a Class II recall on September 11, 2026. Two of the six soaps had tested positive for five bacteria species, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Serratia marcescens. By the time the classification became public, nearly 2,700 cases of the soap had already reached wholesalers and retailers in 15 states, according to reporting from NBC News and People.
Intercon, based in St. Louis, first pulled the six products voluntarily on June 29, 2026, more than two months before the FDA assigned a class to the recall. That gap is routine. A company issues its own recall, then the FDA reviews the risk and assigns it a tier. Class II sits in the middle of the agency's three-level system: it covers products that could cause temporary or medically reversible health problems, with only a remote chance of anything more serious.
What tested positive, and what didn't
Two of the six soaps tested positive for five bacteria: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Pseudomonas putida, Pseudomonas monteilii, Serratia marcescens and Serratia nematodiphila, per the recall notice reviewed by NBC News. The remaining four, including two Laura Lynn-branded soaps sold through Ingles Markets, the Asheville, North Carolina grocery chain that owns the Laura Lynn store brand, were recalled without a confirmed positive test. No illnesses tied to any of the six products had been reported as of mid-September 2026, according to NBC News and People. Intercon has not issued public comment beyond the recall notice itself, based on the reporting available.
- Intercon Foaming Pear Hand Soap With Aloe, 28.7 fl. oz. (UPC 789745002981)
- Clearly Better by Intercon Foaming Pear Hand Soap With Aloe, 1000 mL (UPC 789745002615)
- Summit 150 Foaming Hand Soap, 28.7 fl. oz. (UPC 810080570030)
- Vestis Foaming Hand Soap, Fresh Pear Scent, 33.8 fl. oz. (UPC 810080570405)
- Laura Lynn Honey Apple Crisp Liquid Hand Soap, 8 fl. oz. (UPC 086854074305)
- Laura Lynn Foaming Pear Scent Hand Soap With Moisturizers, 7.5 fl. oz. (UPC 08685407408)
2,696
cases of soap recalled
Distributed to 20 wholesalers and retailers across 15 states before the FDA's Class II classification on September 11, 2026.
Who actually needs to worry
For someone with intact skin and a working immune system, contact with these bacteria carries little practical risk. Pseudomonas and Serratia species are common in soil, water and plumbing, and most healthy people are exposed to some version of them without consequence. The FDA's warning narrows the real concern to two groups: anyone applying the soap to broken skin, a cut, a scrape, or a surgical site, and anyone who is immunocompromised or caring for someone who is. In those cases, the bacteria named in the recall have been linked to pneumonia, urinary tract infections and bloodstream infections.
A pattern, not an isolated event
This is not the first FDA-classified recall built around bacteria in liquid soap. DermaRite Industries, a New Jersey manufacturer, recalled four products nationwide in August 2025, DermaKleen, DermaSarra, KleenFoam and PeriGiene, after finding Burkholderia cepacia complex. DermaRite's own recall notice said the bacteria could progress to life-threatening sepsis in immunocompromised patients. The two recalls involve different companies and different bacteria about thirteen months apart, but they share the same underlying vulnerability: liquid soap is water-based, and a manufacturing line that isn't properly sanitized can turn a bottle of soap into a growth medium.
Bottom line
Bottom line
The recalled soaps carry a real but narrow risk. Two of six products confirmed positive for five bacteria species; the other four were pulled as a precaution without a positive test, and no illnesses have been reported. Healthy people with intact skin have little to worry about. Anyone immunocompromised, or applying soap to broken skin, can compare the product list and UPC codes against what's in their own bathroom or workplace.
- FDA recall
- Intercon Chemical
- hand soap
- Pseudomonas aeruginosa
- Class II recall
- bacterial contamination
Sources
- 01Hand Soap Recalled in 15 States Over Possible Bacteria Contamination, NBC Newsnbcnews.com
- 02Nearly 2,700 Cases of Hand Soap Recalled for Possible Bacterial Contamination, Peopleyahoo.com
- 03DermaRite Expands Voluntary Nationwide Recall Due to Burkholderia Cepacia Contamination, DermaRite Industriesdermarite.com
Corrections
No corrections have been made to this article.
About the reporter
Health & Wellness Reporter, Trestlewire
I come from a health-policy and medical-reporting background, and I want to say the same thing up front that I say in nearly every piece I write: I am not a physician, and nothing I write is medical advice. My job is to report on health accurately — to explain what a study found, what it didn't, and what a reader can actually do with that — not to practice medicine from a keyboard.
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