Here is today’s list of food safety recalls, product withdrawals, allergy alerts and miscellaneous compliance issues. The live links will take you directly to the official recall notices and company news releases that contain detailed information for each recall and alert.

United States

• Allergy Alert: Schnucks Markets, Inc. alert customers of Schnucks, Logli and Hilander stores that Schnucks Instant Beef Bouillon (UPC 4131803061; Best before NOV 18 2013) contains chicken bouillon, due to a labeling error.
• FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Tree Top Inc. (Seattle, WA) that samples analyzed as part of a July 2011 inspection of the company’s manufacturing facility revealed elevated levels of inorganic arsenic in pear juice concentrate.
• FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Universal Supplement, Inc. (Vista, CA) that a July 2011 inspection of the company’s dietary supplement manufacturing facility revealed failure to comply with the Current Good Manufacturing Practice regulations for dietary supplements.
• FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Flying Food Group, Inc. (Chicago, IL) that the classification of its airline catering facility has been changed from “Approved” to “Provisional” after an inspection of the facility revealed significant violations under the Public Health Service Act. In addition, the inspection revealed that the company’s contract sandwich manufacturing and ready-to eat tuna fish sandwich manufacturing activities revealed serious violations of the seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) regulation.
• FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Lushlife Gardens (Milford, NJ) that a November 2011 inspection of the company’s sprout processing facility, which was triggered by a sample of the company’s Saladini brand alfalfa sprouts having yielded Listeria monocytogenes, revealed insanitary conditions and the presence of Listeria monocytogenes in environmental swab samples at two locations in the facility.
• FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Pure Encapsulations, Inc. (Sudbury, MA) that an August 2011 inspection of the company’s dietary supplement manufacturing, packaging, labeling, and holding facility revealed serious violations of the Current Good Manufacturing Practice (CGMP) regulations for dietary supplements.
• FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Woeber Mustard Manufacturing Co. Inc. (Springfield, OH) that an August/September 2011 inspection of the company’s processing facility revealed serious violations of the juice Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) regulation, and the Current Good Manufacturing Practice regulation for foods.
• Outbreak Alert Update: The gastroenteritis outbreak that sickened 288 passengers and 68 crew members on the Princess Cruises’ Crown Princess, and and forced an early termination of the cruise on February 9th, has been confirmed to have been caused by norovirus.
• Counterfeit Pharmaceutical Product Alert: Roche’s Genentech unit warns doctors and patients that counterfeit vials of Avastin (believed to be labeled with lot numbers B86017, B6011 or B6010) have been distributed in the USA. The counterfeit products do not have “Genentech” printed on the packaging. Furthermore, Avastin uses 6-digit lot numbers with no letters.

Canada

• Allergy Alert: Phoenix Trading International recalls Safoco Vegetable Macaroni (200g, 300g, and 500g; Lot Code BB 12/27/2012) and Safoco Green Bean Macaroni (200g and 300g; Lot Code 12/27/2012), due to the presence of undeclared egg. The recalled products were distributed in Manitoba and British Columbia.
• Allergy Alert: Capital Packers Inc. recalls Capital Packer’s Beer Sausage (variable size; All codes), due to the presence of  undeclared soy. The recalled product was distributed nationally.
• Allergy Alert: Chuang’s Company Ltd. recalls Cosine Instant Pudding Powder (1kg; Code 0731), due to the presence of undeclared milk. The recalled product was distributed in Ontario.
• Allergy Alert: Poissonnerie Cowie (Granby, QC) recalls Crevettes à la szechuannaise, Gratin de sole, Panini saumon fumé et sa verdure, and L’intégrale thon, noix de Grenoble et canneberge (all lots/codes), due to the presence of undeclared wheat, soy, sesame, egg, and/or milk.

Europe

• Food Safety Enforcement Action (UK): A.C. Hopkins (Taunton) Ltd. has been found guilty of failing to ensure that pig carcasses were immediately chilled in the slaughterhouse to achieve and maintain a temperature throughout the meat of not more than 7ºC. Sentencing has been adjourned until a date to be fixed in April.
• Pharmaceutical Product Safety Recall (France): Laboratoires Arrow France, Mylan SAS, Sandoz France and Qualimed SAS recall Children and Infants Cefpodoxime , 40mg/5 ml oral suspension (All expiration dates prior to March 31, 2013), after Sandoz found out-of-specification dosage results for the active ingredient and product impurities during their stability studies.
• Allergy Alert Notification (EU #2012.0234 & 2012.0235): Undeclared peanut in walnut ice cream from Germany; distributed to the Czech Republic, Germany and Hungary.
• Animal Feed Safety Notification (EU #2012.0236): Salmonella Havana in rapeseed meal from Denmark, with raw material from Poland; distributed to Sweden.
• Animal Feed Safety Notification (EU #2012.0237): Salmonella Mbandaka in organic soya meal from Italy, via Germany; distributed to Sweden.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0239): Salmonella Brancaster, Salmonella Salamae, and Salmonella spp. in gum traganth powder from Austria; distributed to Denmark.

Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands

• Food Safety Recall (Taiwan): US beef ribs were removed from store displays after residues of the leanness-enhancing drug ractopamine was detected. The drug, which is allowed in animal feed in the USA, is banned in Taiwan, China, the European Union, and many other countries.

Australia and New Zealand

• Food Safety Recall (New Zealand): Fonterra Brands (New Zealand) Ltd recalls Mainland Salted Butter Block (500g; Best before 10 January 2013; Batch CV 12) and Anchor Salted Butter Block (500g; Best before 26 January 2013; Batch CV 28), after a fine, sharp metal object was found in a single pack of both brands. The recalled products were sold in supermarkets, dairies and service stations throughout New Zealand.

Some supermarket chains post recall notices on their web sites for the convenience of customers. To see whether a recalled food was carried by your favorite supermarket, follow the live link to the supermarket’s recall web site.