Ricky Joy recalls 2.3 million sour candy bottles after rollerball choking hazard

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission on Wednesday announced the recall of more than 2.3 million bottles of Ricky Joy-branded Sour Crush rolling liquid candy after determining that the rollerball applicator on top of each bottle can detach, creating a choking hazard for children. The federal recall notice warns that the loose ball "can detach, posing a risk of serious injury or death from choking," and instructs parents to take the candy away from children immediately.

The affected product is sold as 1.85-fluid-ounce plastic bottles filled with sour liquid candy that is meant to be rolled onto the tongue through a small ball fitted into the cap, a format popular with school-age children and often stocked near checkout counters, as local television reports on the recall also noted. The recall covers all four flavors sold under the line: blue raspberry, strawberry, green apple and watermelon, each printed with the Ricky Joy logo, the words "Extreme Sour, Sour Crush" and an image of a green monster.

The numbers

According to the CPSC, roughly 2.3 million units are covered by the recall. The bottles were sold individually for about $3 and in three- or twelve-packs priced between $13 and $32, both in stores and online, from January 2023 through May 2026 — a sales window of more than three years. Retailers named in the notice include H-E-B and Forman Mill, along with candy shops nationwide and online sellers such as Walmart.com, CandyFunHouse.com and the manufacturer's own site. The CPSC recall record, filed under number 26-748, lists no injuries or incidents reported to date in connection with this specific product.

The importer, International Trade Imports LLC, doing business as The Ricky Joy Company, is based in Cumming, Georgia; the candy itself is manufactured in Colombia. The company is offering a full refund to consumers who return the bottles using a prepaid shipping label, and can be reached at 404-975-0352 on weekdays, or through the recall page at the company's own recall portal.

How rolling-ball candy became a recurring hazard

The Ricky Joy recall is the latest in a string of enforcement actions the CPSC has taken against rolling-ball liquid candies since 2023, a category that packages flavored syrup with a small plastic or metal ball meant to roll product onto a child's tongue. In October 2023, Candy Dynamics recalled roughly 70 million Slime Licker candies after reports that the applicator ball could separate from the container.

The hazard proved fatal the following year. In March 2024, the CPSC took the unusual step of warning consumers to stop buying or using any roller-ball candy product after a 7-year-old girl died from choking on the dislodged ball from a Cocco Candy rolling candy, and a 7-year-old boy needed emergency surgery after a similar ball became lodged in his throat while using a different brand, Happiness USA Roller Ball Candy. The agency's blanket warning that month covered the entire product category rather than a single brand, an escalation reserved for hazards regulators consider systemic. Cocco Candy and its distributor, KGR Distribution, separately recalled their rolling candy the same year.

That the same basic design flaw — a small, detachable ball sitting atop a container marketed to children — is still turning up in a national recall more than two years after a child's death illustrates how difficult it has been for regulators to get ahead of a candy format that remains widely available and cheaply imported.

Who is affected

Because the bottles were sold broadly at grocery and candy retailers as well as online for more than three years, the recall reaches a large population of households, day cares, schools and after-school programs that may have purchased the candy as a novelty treat or party favor. The CPSC notice does not limit the recall to a particular lot or manufacturing date, meaning any Ricky Joy Sour Crush bottle purchased since January 2023 in any of the four flavors is included. Parents, caregivers, teachers and retailers who still have stock on shelves or in inventory are all covered by the recall.

• Product: Ricky Joy Sour Crush Rolling Liquid Candy, 1.85 fl. oz. bottles, sold single or in 3- and 12-packs
• Flavors: blue raspberry, strawberry, green apple, watermelon
• Sold: January 2023 through May 2026, at H-E-B, Forman Mill, other candy retailers, and online at Walmart.com, CandyFunHouse.com and RickyJoy.com
• Hazard: the rollerball applicator can detach and become a choking hazard

What consumers should do next

The CPSC and the manufacturer are advising anyone with the recalled candy to stop giving it to children immediately, take it out of reach, and contact The Ricky Joy Company to arrange a refund. The company said it will provide a prepaid return shipping label so consumers do not need to pay to send the bottles back; refunds can also be requested by calling the company's toll-free line, 404-975-0352, weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern, or by visiting the recall page on the company's website.

No injuries had been reported in connection with the Ricky Joy product as of the recall's announcement, but the agency's own account of the 2024 death tied to a similar candy design underscores why officials are treating a detached applicator ball as a serious hazard rather than a packaging defect. Consumers who are uncertain whether a bottle in their home matches the recalled description can compare the flavor names and the green monster graphic against the images posted on the CPSC's recall notice before discarding or returning the product. Retailers still carrying the item are expected to pull it from shelves and stop online sales, consistent with standard CPSC recall practice.