Anyone out there like pistachios? Can't say that I do, what with turning my fingers green and all that, I'll settle for a nice, meaty cashew any day. Ah, but I digress. If you are a pistachio lover, and a Kroger (NYSE: KR) shopper, you may want to pay special attention.

On Friday, KR recalled a line of its pistachios because of a potential salmonella contamination. KR announced a recall of the "Private Selection" shelled pistachios sold in 10-ounce containers with a December 13, 2009 sell-by date, UPC number 1111073615.

The company stated that no illnesses have been reported in connection with the product, and it would give no idea of how the pistachios were exposed to salmonella. The nuts were sold at 17 of KR's chains in 31 states, including Kroger, Ralphs, Fred Meyer, Fry's, King Soopers, Smith's, Dillons QFC, City Market, Foods Co., Jay C., Scott's, Owen's, Baker's, Gerbes, Hilander, and Pay Less.

The timing of this announcement could be bad for KR, as its shares have started to perk up of late. The grocer was trading near the $27 region when the year started, but has fallen as low as the $19 region in the first three months of 2009. That said, the stock has rallied a bit and is trading in the lower $22 region.

Hopefully this recall won't affect the stock's price, but don't count out a bit of a drop thanks to the news. As to how far the stock could fall, that is anybody's guess. This follows closely on the heels of the big peanut salmonella case earlier this year.

Grocery stores are no strangers to leveraged buyouts. Back in the roaring 1980s, they were a juicy target for private equity firms.

Well, according to a piece in the Wall Street Journal, we may see a comeback in activity in the sector. The paper says that Kroger (NYSE: KR) is a buyout target.

I can see why. In light of the competition – such as from Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.(NYSE: WMT) – there is lots of pressure on traditional grocery stores to make changes. Also, valuations are reasonable.

Kroger certainly has a big footprint. There are 2,468 stores in 31 states (with more than two dozen brands such as Ralph's and Fred Meyer). The company is either ranked #1 or #2 in 38 of its 44 biggest markets.

Lately, Kroger's stock price has been rallying and sports a market cap of $20 billion. If you throw in the long term debt, the company has an enterprise value of $27 billion. That means the company is selling at about 8X EBITDA, which is at a level where a deal can get done.

Who are the buyers? None were mentioned. Although, it looks like Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) is the financial advisor for Kroger.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook and the EDGAR-Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements.