The persistent claim that rat meat is being sold as boneless chicken wings has recently regained traction on social media.
A recording of a 13-second TikTok video shared Jan. 16 to Instagram appears to show a screenshot of another post with a TV news graphic.
The graphic has an image of fried food on a platter with an apparent news chyron that reads, "Breaking News: One million pounds of rat meat being sold in America."
Below the graphic is an apparent headline that reads, "Million pounds (sic) of rat meat being sold as boneless chicken wings in the U.S."
"Meanwhile y'all all lined up at the Taco Bell trying to get y'all some wings," a woman says in the video. "I don't know if that's rat meat or what."
The post generated close to 32,000 likes in less than a week. Variations of this claim also amassed hundreds of likes on Instagram and Facebook.
But the claim is false. There is no evidence customers are buying rat meat instead of boneless chicken wings, as independent fact-checking organizations have noted.
USA TODAY reached out to the social media users who shared the claim for comment.
The rat meat claim is baseless, according to a comment provided through the Department of Agriculture's Food and Safety Inspection Service.
The Food and Drug Administration has not issued any safety alerts, recalls or market withdrawals related to rat meat in boneless chicken wings.
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