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Peanut plant in salmonella outbreak fined $14.6M

Posted on 10th April 2009 by Gordon Johnson in Uncategorized

peanut butter products, peanut butter recalls, Peanut Corp. of America, peanut paste recall, Plainview Peanut Corp, salmonella food poisoning, salmonella outbreak, salmonella poisoning

Date: 4/10/2009

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The shuttered Texas plant owned by a peanut company blamed in a national salmonella outbreak that sickened nearly 700 people was fined a record $14.6 million on Thursday.

The state fined Plainview Peanut Corp. LLC over violations that include unsanitary conditions, product contamination, illnesses linked to peanuts from the plant and operating for almost four years without a food manufacturer’s license, the Texas Department of State Health Services said.

Spokesman Doug McBride said the fine was the largest ever levied by the department.

“We felt the assessment of the administrative fines needed to be done regardless of financial situations,” he said, referring to bankruptcy filings by the plant’s owner, Peanut Corp. of America. “If there is a violation, the penalties need to be assessed, period.”

The agency said it sent a notice of violation to the Plainview plant on Wednesday.

The plant voluntarily closed Feb. 9 after a private lab sample showed likely salmonella contamination. Texas health officials later ordered a recall of products processed there.

Andy Goldstein, an attorney handling the bankruptcy case for Lynchburg, Va.-based Peanut Corp., didn’t immediately return a phone call seeking comment.

In January, federal investigators identified a Georgia peanut processing plant operated by Peanut Corp. as the source of the salmonella outbreak, believed to be the cause of at least nine deaths.

At the Texas plant, inspectors found that a ventilation system was pulling debris from an infested crawl space into production areas. The plant was ordered by the state to stop producing and distributing food products.

Thousands of possibly contaminated consumer products were recalled in one of the country’s largest product recalls.

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Jar peanut butter sales fall amid salmonella fears

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Posted on 10th February 2009 by Gordon Johnson in Uncategorized

peanut butter products, peanut butter recalls, Peanut Corp. of America, peanut meal, peanut paste, salmonella, salmonella deaths, salmonella food poisoning, salmonella outbreak

Date: 2/10/2009

By KATE BRUMBACK
Associated Press Writer

ATLANTA (AP) — Shoppers are leaving jarred peanut butter off their grocery lists, according to sales figures, even though familiar brands have not been affected by the salmonella outbreak that has sickened hundreds and led to one of the largest product recalls in U.S. history.

To fight the sales slump, the makers of Jif and Peter Pan have countered with a costly advertising campaign aimed at reassuring nervous eaters.

Jarred peanut butter sales during the four weeks ending Jan. 24 dropped 22 percent from the same period the previous year, according to figures compiled by The Nielsen Company, which tracks consumer purchasing decisions. The 33.8 million pounds of peanut butter includes jars sold at food, drug and mass merchandisers, but not Wal-Mart stores.

Although more recent data weren’t available Monday, hundreds more products have been recalled since the period measured by Nielsen, making the peanut industry’s woes even more visible to consumers. As a result, some consumers say they’re avoiding peanut butter entirely.

“I just stopped because I didn’t want to risk anything happening,” said Kate Labrecque, 24, as she ate lunch in a downtown Atlanta park. She said she’s waiting until “they put something out that says it’s safe to eat stuff with peanuts.”

Federal investigators have linked peanut products made at Peanut Corp. of America’s southwest Georgia peanut processing plant to the salmonella outbreak that has sickened 575 people and may have caused as many as eight deaths.

On Monday, the FBI raided the plant in Blakely, Ga., hauling off boxes and other material. Agents executed search warrants at both the plant and at Peanut Corp.’s headquarters in Lynchburg, Va., according to a senior congressional aide with knowledge of the raids. The official spoke only on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

The Lynchburg, Va.-based company sold its peanut butter to institutional clients, such as nursing homes, and its peanut paste to many other companies that used it as an ingredient in products ranging from cookies and ice cream to energy bars and pet treats. While the company initially said its products weren’t sold directly to consumers, it said Sunday that some of its products — including dry and honey-roasted nuts — were also sold directly to consumers at the retailers 99 Cent Stuff, 99 Cents Only Stores, Dollar General, and Dollar Tree Stores.

Leading brands of jarred peanut butter, however, aren’t part of the scandal, and their makers have found themselves scrambling to spread that message to shoppers.

J.M. Smucker Co., which makes Jif peanut butter, has received about 40,000 phone calls from concerned customers since reports surfaced that the bacteria outbreak was linked to peanut butter, said spokeswoman Maribeth Badertscher.

“We’re doing what we can to make sure consumers know our products are safe,” she said.

Smuckers and ConAgra Foods Inc., the maker of Peter Pan, have both taken out half-page newspaper ads in papers around the country telling consumers their products are completely safe and featuring coupons for savings on a jar of their peanut butter.

“Consumers have been confused by the media and are uncertain about what products are safe,” said Stephanie Childs, a spokeswoman for ConAgra. “We’ve been very clear to consumers about the safety of our products and the reasons that we can be sure our products are safe.”

Those reasons — echoed by Smuckers and Skippy manufacturer Unilever — include stringent product safety and quality control measures and the fact that they do not buy any products from Peanut Corp.

But for some shoppers, those companies’ efforts haven’t sunk in yet.

“I have stopped totally eating or purchasing peanut products until I get more information this problem is solved,” said Atlanta resident Michael Jackson, a 59-year-old printer who adds that he loves peanut butter.

In Pittsburgh, Cindy Connelly mistakenly bought peanut butter-filled pretzels, and her husband promptly tossed them in the trash.

“Hopefully there’ll be more control over this kind of thing and it’s not worth getting sick over it,” said the 55-year-old hospital admissions official in Pittsburgh.

But industry officials say consumers can easily check which products are and aren’t safe. In addition to the list of recalled products on the Food and Drug Administration’s Web site, the American Peanut Council, an umbrella trade association that represents all segments of the U.S. peanut industry, has put a list on its own Web site of products that are safe to eat.

“The vast majority of peanut products, or products containing peanuts, are safe,” said council president Patrick Archer. “If consumers have any doubt, they should check with the manufacturer.”

And some consumers are doing just that.

Retirees Ray Pfeifer, 60, and his wife Kathleen, 61, had peanut butter on their grocery list when they stopped at a Giant Eagle grocery store in Pittsburgh Monday. Ray Pfeifer had checked the online listings before leaving the house and knew his preferred brand, Smuckers Natural Peanut Butter, was OK.

“I’m off peanuts but I’m not off peanut butter,” he said. “I’m just looking to see where it’s from.”

___

Associated Press Writers Johnny Clark in Atlanta, Jim Drinkard in Washington and Ramit Plushnick-Masti in Pittsburgh contributed to this report.

___

On the Net:

FDA, http://www.fda.gov

American Peanut Council, http://www.peanutsusa.com

Peter Pan peanut butter, http://www.peterpanpb.com

Jif peanut butter, http://www.jif.com/home.asp

Skippy peanut butter, http://www.peanutbutter.com

Peanut Corp. of America, http://www.peanutcorp.com

Peanut product recall tops list of bad foods

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Posted on 5th February 2009 by Gordon Johnson in Uncategorized

PCA, peanut butter products, peanut butter recalls, Peanut Corp. of America, peanut paste recall, salmonella, salmonella deaths, salmonella food poisoning

Date: 2/5/2009

By The Associated Press

The recall of peanut products because of possible salmonella contamination has mushroomed into one of the largest.

Depending on how recalls are measured, few others come close. If counted by the number of products, more than 1,313 have been recalled as of Thursday. The closest is the 1,177 pet food products recalled in 2007 after melamine was discovered in some ingredients.

If measured in pounds, the February 2008 recall of beef from a California packaging plant would top the list, with 143 million pounds affected.

The current salmonella outbreak has been blamed for eight deaths and 575 illnesses. A June 2008 salmonella contamination of tomatoes and jalapeno peppers made more people ill — more than 1,200.

___

Breakdown of recent national food contaminations that triggered recalls and warnings to consumers:

—January 2009: Peanuts, peanut paste, peanut butter; 1,313 products recalled; salmonella contamination; produced by Peanut Corp. of America in Georgia; more than 575 illnesses and eight deaths reported.

—June 2008: Tomatoes and raw jalapeno peppers; more than $100 million in crops affected; salmonella contamination; grown in Mexico; more than 1,200 illnesses reported and no deaths.

—February 2008: beef; more than 143 million pounds affected; unfit, weak and sick cattle slaughtered for human consumption; packed by Westland Meat Co. in California; no illnesses or deaths reported.

—March 2007: Pet food; 1,177 products recalled; melamine contamination; produced from vegetable proteins imported from China. no human illnesses or deaths reported, but more than 14,000 pet illnesses and 16 deaths.

—September 2006: Spinach; more than $86 million in crops affected; E. coli contamination; grown in California; more than 200 illnesses and three deaths reported.

Firm tied to salmonella ran unlicensed Texas plant

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Posted on 3rd February 2009 by Gordon Johnson in Uncategorized

FDA news, FDA warnings, PCA, peanut butter products, peanut butter recalls, Peanut Corp. of America, peanut meal, peanut paste recall, salmonella deaths, salmonella food poisoning

Date: 2/3/2009

By BRETT J. BLACKLEDGE
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — A peanut processing plant in Texas run by the same company blamed for a national salmonella outbreak operated for years uninspected and unlicensed by government health officials, The Associated Press has learned.

The Peanut Corp. of America plant in Plainview never was inspected until after the company fell under investigation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, according to Texas health records obtained by AP.

Once inspectors learned about the Texas plant, they found no sign of salmonella there. But new details about that plant — including how it could have operated unlicensed for nearly four years — raise questions about the adequacy of government efforts to keep the nation’s food supply safe. Texas is among states where the FDA relies on state inspectors to oversee food safety.

The salmonella outbreak was traced to the company’s sister plant in Blakely, Ga., where inspectors found roaches, mold, a leaking roof and internal records of more than a dozen positive tests for salmonella.

The outbreak so far has resulted in more than 500 reported illnesses, led to an expansive recall and caused as many as eight deaths. The government is working on a criminal investigation in the case.

In Texas, inspector Patrick Moore of the Department of State Health Services was sent to Plainview, in the sparsely populated Texas Panhandle, after salmonella was traced to the company’s plant in Georgia. Moore said the Texas plant wasn’t licensed with health officials and had never been inspected since it opened in March 2005. Texas requires food manufacturers to be licensed every two years and routinely inspected.

“I was not aware this plant was in operation and did not know (what) type of products processed,” Moore wrote in an inspection report obtained by AP.

The plant is registered with the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts to do business as Plainview Peanut Co. LLC, according to state records. But the company “was unable to present evidence at the time of the inspection of a current food manufacturers license,” Moore wrote in his report.

The plant was properly registered with the FDA as a food processing plant, said David Glasgow, director of the agency’s investigations branch in Dallas. FDA inspectors went through the plant two weeks ago after the state inspection and did not find salmonella or other problems, Glasgow said.

Texas ordered its inspection Jan. 12 during the FDA’s investigation of the Georgia plant, after it received reports that Peanut Corp. was operating the plant in Plainview, health services spokesman Doug McBride said. Texas requires food companies to obtain two-year licenses but doesn’t have enough money or inspectors to catch companies that don’t.

“We can’t drive up and down the street to know what people are doing behind closed doors,” McBride said.

Moore reported some unsanitary conditions, such as unclean sections of a peanut roasting line. But several internal company laboratory tests dating back to November found no salmonella or other contaminants, according to documents included in Moore’s report.

Plant manager Jesus Garrocho told Moore that he sent Texas health department forms to the company’s Virginia headquarters more than a year ago and did not know why the licensing forms were not completed.

Moore said the plant manager promised during the January inspection to register the plant with state health officials: “He will make sure this gets in and paid,” Moore wrote.

McBride said the company still hasn’t done so.

“Our first preference is not to go out and shut somebody down and wipe out jobs and income,” he said. “Our philosophy in any of our regulatory programs is to try to get a company in compliance.”

The plant is the subject of a complaint filed since the state’s inspection Jan. 12, and is scheduled for a new inspection in coming weeks, McBride said. He would not provide details about the complaint.

Garrocho referred questions Monday to company lawyers. Amy Rotenberg, a Minneapolis lawyer representing Peanut Corp., declined to comment.

The Texas plant blanches, dry roasts, oil-roasts and chops peanuts, then ships them to food companies across the country. The Georgia plant also processes peanuts, and produces peanut paste and peanut butter.

Inspection reports from peanut plant varied widely

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Posted on 2nd February 2009 by Gordon Johnson in Uncategorized

FDA, PCA, peanut butter products, peanut butter recalls, Peanut Corp. of America, peanut meal, peanut paste, peanut paste recall

Date: 2/2/2009

By KATE BRUMBACK and GREG BLUESTEIN
Associated Press Writers

BLAKELY, Ga. (AP) — A Georgia health inspector who toured the peanut butter plant now at the center of a national salmonella outbreak noted only two minor violations in October. Less than three months later, federal inspectors found roaches, mold, a leaking roof and other sanitation problems.

Food safety experts say the lapse is a major concern and shows state inspectors are spread thin and might need more training on how to spot unsanitary conditions.

“It’s surprising to me that that many major deficiencies were observed at one time, and none of these were picked up previously,” said Michael Doyle, head of the food safety center at the University of Georgia.

In October, state inspector Donna Adams noted only two violations in her report on the Peanut Corp. of America plant: tote containers with butter residue and “black buildup” and “mildew and possibly some static dust on ceiling of butter storage room.”

No samples of the finished product were taken for salmonella testing during the October inspection, despite a push by the state to check for the bacteria after a salmonella outbreak was traced to another Georgia peanut butter plant in 2007.

The October report showing only minor violations seems to conflict with conditions observed by at least one former employee, though others said they saw no problems.

Jonathan Prather, who said he worked in the plant’s peanut butter room until he and most of the plant’s other employees were recently laid off, said he sometimes saw old and soggy peanuts being used and other unsanitary conditions. When he raised concerns about the plant’s cleanliness, Prather said he was ignored by managers.

“The only thing they said is, ‘We’ll handle this, we’ll handle the problem,’” he said. “But I don’t see that they did because if they had, none of this would have happened.”

Another former employee, Jimmy Boozer, said he worked at the plant for six years and never noticed any unsanitary conditions. Co-worker Lewis Smith, who had been working at the plant for about two years, said the plant appeared generally clean. One problem Smith noticed was a roof that leaked for months and continued to leak even after plant managers said it had been repaired.

A leaky roof would likely cause some concern for inspectors: After the 2007 salmonella outbreak was linked to a Georgia peanut butter plant operated by ConAgra Foods Inc., company officials said jars were contaminated when moisture from a roof leak and a malfunctioning sprinkler system mixed with dormant salmonella bacteria in the plant.

Adams, who inspected the plant twice last year, did not come to the door to speak to a reporter who visited her home in southwestern Georgia. A man who identified himself as her husband referred all questions to the state.

Georgia agricultural officials did not return repeated phone calls and messages seeking comment. Earlier in the week, Agricultural Commissioner Tommy Irvin defended his inspectors, saying they did the best they could with limited manpower and funding.

Irvin said the department has about 60 inspectors responsible for examining 15,000 sites — or 250 food sources per inspector — ranging from ice machines to sprawling factories. Some territories are left uncovered, forcing the state to shift employees from one area to another.

Peanut Corp. did not respond to several requests asking for details of plant operations. The company issued a general statement late Friday that emphasized its top concern continues to be ensuring public safety.

“For Peanut Corporation to engage in any discussion of the facts at this point is premature,” the statement said.

The Food and Drug Administration said Friday it had asked the Justice Department to launch a criminal investigation into Peanut Corp., which authorities say shipped products that initially tested positive for salmonella after retesting and getting a negative result.

At least 529 people have been sickened as a result of the outbreak, and at least eight may have died because of it. More than 430 products have been recalled.

The 29-year-old Prather painted a grim picture of the facility, describing managers more concerned with the company’s bottom line than with properly cleaning the plant and equipment.

He said both soggy peanuts and peanuts in packages marked with dates showing they were five or six years old were dumped into the production line. The American Peanut Council, an industry trade association, says peanuts need to be kept dry to prevent mold and other risks.

Prather also said a dry roaster at the plant was halted only one day a month for cleaning. Doyle, the food safety expert, said peanut roasters should be cleaned and sanitized at least once a week.

“What they needed to do and what they didn’t do is clean up right,” said Prather, who noted the plant was sometimes shut down for cleaning on the weekends but said that wasn’t enough.

Doyle, who has been asked by the American Peanut Council to help review the industry’s practices, said the state would likely have to provide inspectors with “more in-depth training in terms of the really critical areas.”

And he said it’s a problem that likely spans far beyond Georgia.

“It’s something the federal government is going to have to take a lead role on, to develop criteria for different producers,” Doyle said. “I think this peanut plant is just an example of the weakness in our system.”

___

Greg Bluestein reported from Atlanta.

Peanut plant problem forces fresh recall

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Posted on 29th January 2009 by Gordon Johnson in Uncategorized

FDA recalls, PCA, peanut butter products, peanut butter recalls, Peanut Corp. of America, peanut meal, peanut paste recall, salmonella

Date: 1/29/2009

By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Worried about salmonella, the Army said Thursday it’s removing some peanut butter items from warehouses in Europe, the latest in an ever-growing list of recalled peanut products linked to a national salmonella outbreak.

Already more than 430 kinds of cakes, cookies and other goods in the civilian world have been pulled off store shelves in what the Food and Drug Administration is calling one of the largest product recalls in memory. The Army’s recall does not affect Meals-Ready-to-Eat, but another kind of military grub called Unitized Group Rations-A, which provide a complete 50-person meal.

More than 500 people have gotten sick in the U.S. outbreak, and at least eight may have died as a result of salmonella infection.

At the center of the investigation is a Georgia peanut processing plant where federal inspectors reported finding roaches, mold, a leaking roof and other sanitary problems.

Managers at the Blakely, Ga., plant owned by Peanut Corp. of America continued shipping peanut products even after they were found to contain salmonella, the FDA said. The company shipped the food items after retesting them and getting negative results.

Peanut Corp. expanded its recall Wednesday to all peanut goods produced at the plant since Jan. 1, 2007. The company makes just 1 percent of the peanut products sold in the United States, but those products are ingredients in hundreds of other foods, from ice cream, to Asian-style sauces, to dog biscuits. Major national brands of peanut butter are not affected.

A senior lawmaker in Congress and Georgia’s agriculture commissioner called for a criminal probe of the company, but the FDA said that would be premature while its own food safety investigation continues.

The company says it is fully cooperating with the government and has stopped all production at the plant. Peanut Corp. said in a statement it “categorically denies any allegations that the company sought favorable results from any lab in order to ship its products.”

Stewart Parnell, the firm’s president, said that the recall was expanded out of an abundance of caution.

“We have been devastated by this, and we have been working around the clock with the FDA to ensure any potentially unsafe products are removed from the market immediately,” Parnell said.

Most of the older products in the expanded recall have probably been eaten already. Officials said they see no signs of any earlier outbreaks from those goods.

The recall covers peanut butter, peanut paste, peanut meal and granulated products, as well as all peanuts — dry and oil roasted — shipped from the factory. FDA officials could not quantify the amount of products being recalled.

Officials recommend that consumers check the FDA web site, which lists all the products being recalled, and toss out any that are named.

Salmonella had been found previously at least 12 times in products made at the plant, but production lines were never cleaned after internal tests indicated contamination, FDA inspectors said in a report. Products that initially tested positive were retested. When the company got a negative reading, it shipped the products out.

That happened as recently as September. A month later, health officials started picking up signals of the salmonella outbreak.

Michael Rogers, a senior FDA investigator, said it’s possible for salmonella to hide in small pockets of a large batch of peanut butter. That means the same batch can yield both positive and negative results, he said. The products should have been discarded after they first tested positive.

Separately, senior congressional and state officials on Wednesday called for a federal probe of possible criminal violations at the plant.

The company’s actions “can only be described as reprehensible and criminal,” said Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., who oversees FDA funding. “This behavior represents the worst of our current food safety regulatory system.”

In Georgia, the state’s top agriculture official joined DeLauro in asking the Justice Department to determine whether the case warrants criminal prosecution.

“They tried to hide it so they could sell it,” said Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tommy Irvin. “Now they’ve caused a mammoth problem that could destroy their company — and it could destroy the peanut industry.”

___

On the Net:

FDA’s recall page: http://tinyurl.com/8srctw

General Mills and Kroger pull peanut butter items

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Posted on 20th January 2009 by Gordon Johnson in Uncategorized

chinese product recalls, General Mills, Kellogg, peanut butter products, peanut butter recalls, Peanut Corp. of America, peanut paste recall

Date: 1/20/2009

By EMILY FREDRIX
Associated Press Writer

MILWAUKEE (AP) — General Mills Inc. and grocers Kroger Co. and Safeway Inc. have joined the growing list of food companies and retailers pulling items made with peanut butter amid a salmonella outbreak.

The Food and Drug Administration has traced the outbreak to a Georgia plant owned by Peanut Corp. of America, which makes peanut butter and peanut paste and sells it to institutions and food companies. The outbreak may have contributed to the deaths of six people and sickened more than 470 others in 43 states.

The government has advised consumers to avoid eating cookies, cakes, ice cream and other foods containing peanut butter until health officials learn more about the contamination. Peanut butter sold in jars to consumers is not included, officials said.

The FDA has created a searchable list of recalled products and brands on the agency’s Web site.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the bacteria behind the outbreak is common and not an unusually dangerous strain but that the elderly or those with weakened immune systems are more at risk. At least five of the six people who died were elderly. All had salmonella when they died, though their exact causes of death haven’t been determined.

The salmonella outbreak is the second in two years involving peanut butter. Salmonella is the nation’s leading cause of food poisoning; common symptoms include diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps.

Peanut Corp. expanded its own recall Sunday to all peanut butter and peanut paste produced since July 1 at its plant in Blakely, Ga. The recalled products were distributed to institutions, food service industries and private label food companies in 24 states.

“We deeply regret that this product recall has expanded, and our first priority is to protect the health of our customers,” said Stewart Parnell, president of Peanut Corp.

Late Monday, Safeway said some of the products it makes, including Ready Pack Eating Right Kids Apples with Peanut Butter and Orchard Valley Harvest’s Organic Bark Peanut Butter Cookies and Cream, may use peanut butter involved in the recall and asked customers to throw them out or return them to the store for a full refund.

Kellogg Co. recalled 16 cracker and cookie products last week. The company said Monday that federal authorities have confirmed that salmonella was found in a single package of its peanut butter crackers: Austin Quality Foods Toasty Crackers with Peanut Butter, which had previously been recalled.

Other recently recalled items that contain peanut butter:

— Grocer Meijer, which operates 181 stores in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio and Kentucky: Meijer brand Cheese and Peanut Butter and Toasty Peanut Butter crackers, Peanut Butter and Jelly and Peanut Butter Cup ice cream.

— Kroger, the nation’s largest traditional grocery chain: Private Selection Peanut Butter Passion Ice Cream sold in stores named City Market, Fred Meyer, Fry’s, King Scoopers, QFC and Smith’s in 11 states, primarily in the West. The company said the ice cream was not sold in its namesake Kroger stores or any other retailers it operates.

— General Mills: two flavors of snack bars, LARABAR Peanut Butter Cookie and JamFrakas Peanut Butter Blisscrisp.

— Clif Bar & Co.: Some Clif branded bars, including some under Luna and Clif Mojo labels.

— Abbott Nutrition: ZonePerfect Chocolate Peanut Butter bars, ZonePerfect Peanut Toffee bars and NutriPals Peanut Butter Chocolate nutrition bars. The items are sold in the U.S., Mexico, New Zealand and Singapore.

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On the Net:

FDA: http://www.fda.gov

Peanut Corp.: http://www.peanutcorp.com

Kellogg says FDA confirms salmonella in crackers

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Posted on 19th January 2009 by Gordon Johnson in Uncategorized

Kellogg, peanut butter products, Peanut Corp. of America, salmonella deaths, salmonella food poisoning, salmonella outbreak, salmonella poisoning

Date: 1/19/2009

By EMILY FREDRIX
Associated Press Writer

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Kellogg Co. said Monday federal authorities have confirmed that salmonella was found in a single package of its peanut butter crackers, as a Midwestern grocer recalled some of its products because of the scare.

Kellogg had recalled 16 products last week because of the possibility of salmonella contamination.

On Monday, the company based in Battle Creek said that contamination was confirmed by the Food and Drug Administration in a single package of Austin Quality Foods Toasty Crackers with Peanut Butter.

Food companies and retailers have been recalling products with peanut butter in them because of suspicion of contamination amid a salmonella outbreak that has killed at least six people and sickened more than 470 others in 43 states. At least 90 people have been hospitalized.

Also Monday, Midwestern grocer and retailer Meijer Inc. said it was recalling two types of crackers and two varieties of ice cream because of the possibility of salmonella contamination: Meijer brand Cheese and Peanut Butter and Toasty Peanut Butter sandwich crackers, and Peanut Butter and Jelly and Peanut Butter Cup ice cream.

It was not immediately clear how many packages of Kellogg crackers had been tested, if more tests were being made on other products or if some had already been found not have salmonella, Kellogg spokeswoman Kris Charles said. A spokesman for the FDA said the agency was not providing any new information Monday.

The government on Saturday had advised consumers to avoid eating cookies, cakes, ice cream and other foods containing peanut butter until health officials learn more about the contamination.

Officials said that most peanut butter sold in jars at supermarkets appears to be safe.

Officials have been focusing on peanut paste and peanut butter made at Peanut Corp. of America’s plant in Blakely, Ga.

On Sunday, Peanut Corp. expanded its own recall to all peanut butter and peanut paste produced at the Blakely plant since July 1.

The company’s peanut butter is not sold directly to consumers but it is distributed to institutions and food companies. The peanut paste, made from roasted peanuts, is an ingredient in cookies, cakes and other products sold to consumers.

Meijer, based in Grand Rapids, said in a news release Monday it was issuing its recall because makers of its products had announced possible contamination. The products are sold in Meijer stores and gas stations in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Kentucky.

The recall last week by Kellogg, the world’s largest cereal maker, affected products including Keebler Soft Batch Homestyle Peanut Butter Cookies, Famous Amos Peanut Butter Cookies and Keebler Cheese & Peanut Butter Sandwich Crackers. Charles said the recall affected more than 7 million cases of its products.

Kellogg Chief Executive David Mackay said the company would evaluate its processes “to ensure we take necessary actions to reassure consumers and rebuild confidence in these products.”

Salmonella, a bacteria, is the most common cause of food poisoning in the U.S., causing diarrhea, cramping and fever.

Over the weekend, Little Debbie maker McKee Foods Corp. of Collegedale, Tenn., issued a voluntary recall of its peanut butter crackers because of possible contamination.

Other companies issuing recalls recently include Midwest supermarket chain Hy-Vee Inc. of West Des Moines, Iowa, Perry’s Ice Cream Co. of Akron, N.Y., and the South Bend Chocolate Co. in Indiana. Ralcorp Frozen Bakery Products, a division of St. Louis-based Ralcorp, recalled several brands of peanut butter cookies it sells through Wal-Mart stores.

Some companies were quick to assure their customers their products were fine and they were not involved in the investigation. Russell Stover Candies Inc., maker of Russell Stover and Whitman’s, said Monday it does not use ingredients from Peanut Corp. ConAgra Foods Inc., maker of Peter Pan peanut butter, said Saturday it was not involved in the investigation and neither the Omaha, Neb.-based company nor its suppliers use ingredients from Peanut Corp.

Peter Pan and other peanut butter produced by ConAgra were linked in 2007 to a salmonella outbreak that sickened more than 625 people in 47 states. The company traced the contamination to a leaky roof and faulty sprinkler head at its Georgia plant.

Little Debbie peanut butter crackers recalled

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Posted on 18th January 2009 by Gordon Johnson in Uncategorized

FDA recalls, Little Debbie products, peanut butter products, peanut butter recalls, Peanut Corp. of America, salmonella deaths, salmonella food poisoning, salmonella outbreak, salmonella poisoning

Date: 1/18/2009

WASHINGTON (AP) — The company that sells Little Debbie snacks announced a recall Sunday of peanut butter crackers because of a potential link to a deadly salmonella outbreak.

The voluntary recall came one day after the government advised consumers to avoid eating cookies, cakes, ice cream and other foods with peanut butter until health officials learn more about the contamination.

The announcement by McKee Foods Corp. of Collegedale, Tenn., about two kinds of Little Debbie products was the latest in a string of voluntary recalls following the most recent guidance by health officials.

McKee said it had not received any complaints about illnesses from people who ate any size peanut butter toasty sandwich crackers or peanut butter cheese sandwich crackers. The recall covers crackers produced on or after July 1.

Officials are focusing on peanut paste, as well as peanut butter, produced at a Blakely, Ga., facility owned by Peanut Corp. of America. Its peanut butter is not sold directly to consumers but distributed to institutions and food companies. But the peanut paste, made from roasted peanuts, is an ingredient in cookies, cakes and other products that people buy in the supermarket.

So far, more than 470 people have gotten sick in 43 states, and at least 90 had to be hospitalized. At least six deaths are being blamed on the outbreak. Salmonella is a bacteria and the most common source of food poisoning in the U.S., causing diarrhea, cramping and fever.

The Kellogg Co., which listed Peanut Corp. as one of its suppliers, has recalled 16 products. McKee said Kellogg manufactured the Little Debbie crackers covered by the recall.

The Kellogg products recalled include Austin and Keebler branded peanut butter sandwich crackers, and some snack-size packs of Famous Amos peanut butter cookies and Keebler Soft Batch Homestyle peanut butter cookies.

Late Saturday, the Midwest supermarket chain Hy-Vee Inc. of West Des Moines, Iowa, said it was voluntarily recalling products made in its bakery departments with peanut butter because they had the potential to be contaminated with salmonella. The recall covered seven states: Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota and Minnesota.

Perry’s Ice Cream Co., based in Akron, N.Y., said it was recalling select ice cream products containing peanut butter because of the PCA investigation. Its recall covered New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and Virginia.

Most peanut butter sold in jars at supermarkets appears to be safe, the Food and Drug Administration said Saturday.

Peanut Corp. has recalled all peanut butter produced at the Georgia plant since Aug. 8 and all peanut paste produced since Sept. 26.

Health officials are focusing on 30 companies out of a total of 85 that received peanut products from the Georgia plant.

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