Month: September 2012

USDA Issues Public Health Alert – What Took So Long?

USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has announced a Public Health Alert for raw boneless beef trim products imported from Canada that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7.

According to the FSIS News Release,

“FSIS testing of raw boneless beef trim product from Canadian Establishment 38, XL Foods, Inc., confirmed positive for E. coli O157:H7 on September 3, 2012. FSIS alerted the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) of the positive results. After follow-up testing by FSIS and CFIA, the CFIA announced a recall by XL Foods, Inc. of a variety of ground beef products on September 16, 2012. Subsequently, the CFIA has expanded the scope of the recall to include additional products.”

The products were distributed to US establishments in California, Michigan, Nebraska, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin. Some of the recalled beef trim may have been further processed into products such as ground beef, ground beef patties, beef jerky and pastrami. FSIS is working with US customers of XL Foods to determine the final destination of all the affected meat. The agency promises to issue a retail distribution list – but not a list of food service or institutional consignees – as soon as the information is available.

eFoodAlert first broke the news of the US connection on September 17th, after US Foods posted the first of two recall notices for the benefit of its food service customers. By then, the Kroger Company already had notified its customers of a recall of KRO Ground Beef 73% (3-lb pkgs), due to contamination with E. coli O157:H7. The recalled meat was sold in Kroger stores in Greater Cincinnati, Dayton, OH, parts of Indiana, Illinois and eastern Missouri. Jay C, Food4Less and FoodsCo stores also were named in the Kroger recall.

I have to ask – Why did FSIS take so long to issue this Public Health Alert? The information contained in today’s News Release was already known to the US industry as early as September 16th. What purpose did it serve to hold off alerting the general public to this problem?

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has been unusually forthcoming with information on retail distribution of the recalled beef in Canada. A current consolidated list can be found at the Canada/USA Ground Beef Recall tab. I’ll be updating the recall information at that location to include both Canadian and US recall announcements as these are issued.

While no illnesses have apparently been reported either in Canada or the USA in association with this recall, FSIS offers the following information for consumers:

E. coli O157:H7 is a potentially deadly bacterium that can cause bloody diarrhea, dehydration, and in the most severe cases, kidney failure. The very young, seniors and persons with weak immune systems are the most susceptible to foodborne illness.

FSIS advises all consumers to safely prepare their raw meat products, including fresh and frozen, and only consume ground beef that has been cooked to a temperature of 160° F. The only way to confirm that ground beef is cooked to a temperature high enough to kill harmful bacteria is to use a food thermometer that measures internal temperature.

Recalls and Alerts: September 20, 2012

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.

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United States

  • Food Safety Recall: GHSW, LLC (Houston, TX) recalls expired products that contain cut mangoes sourced by Food Source from Agricola Daniella (Code dates from 9/7/12 to 9/15/12), because the mangoes may be contaminated with Salmonella. The recalled products were shipped to retail distribution centers August 29 – September 5, 2012, and sold through retailers in Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas under the Garden Highway and Signature Café brands, and as generic products. Please refer to the Salmonella Braenderup – Mango tab for a list of recalled products and retail distribution information.
  • Food Safety Alert: Forever Cheese has decided to stop importing and selling all products manufactured by Fattorie Chiarappa Srl (Conversano, Italy), effective immediately, including Ricotta Salata Frescolina, Marte brand Roasted Ricotta and Hard Ricotta Salata. Forever Cheese has taken the action due to possible contamination of Marte brand Frescolina Ricotta Salata cheese with Listeria monocytogenes. Fattorie Chiarappa Srl was placed on Import Alert by FDA on September 13, 2012.
  • Food Safety Recall: Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A. Inc. recalls fresh-cut mangoes (32-oz clear plastic bowls; Best by 9/18/12 and 9/22/12; lot codes 05252101 and 03256100, respectively), because the product contains mangoes from Agricola Daniella and may be contaminated with Salmonella. The recalled product was distributed to retailers in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee and Washington.
  • Outbreak Alert: CDC reports that a total of 196 persons in 31 states have been infected with Salmonella Sandiego, Salmonella Pomona and Salmonella Poona since August 3, 2011 as a result of exposure to small pet turtles or their environments.

Canada

  • Allergy Alert: The Poultry Place (Saint Jacobs, ON) recalls Krispy Chicken Wings (2 lb; Best before up to and including 13MR11), due to the presence of undeclared egg, and Marinated Chicken Wings (2 lb & 3 lb; Best before up to and including 13MR11), due to the presence of undeclared wheat. The recalled products were distributed in Ontario.
  • Food Safety Recall: XL Foods expands its earlier recall of ground beef products to include additional products supplied to Sobeys/IGA, Presto, Club Entrepot and CO-OP, because the products may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7. Please refer to the Canada/USA Ground Beef Recall tab for a detailed list of recalled products and affected retailers.

Europe

Australia and New Zealand

  • Allergy Alert (New Zealand): Blue River Dairy LP recalls Milk Maid’s Vanilla Sheep Milk Ice-Cream (850ml tubs) after discovering that the product has been incorrectly labeled. The label states that the product is Allergy Tolerant, Lactose & Dairy Friendly, which could be incorrectly interpreted to mean that the product is lactose and dairy free.

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.

*The Kroger umbrella encompasses numerous supermarket, marketplace and convenience store chains, listed on the Kroger corporate home page.
**Includes Safeway, Vons, Pavilions, Dominick’s, Genuardi’s, Randalls, Tom Thumb, Carrs and Pak N’ Save.

Recalls and Rumors – DFI Cantaloupe

When DFI Marketing Inc. (Fresno, CA) recalled some cantaloupe melons on September 12, 2012, the story went something like this:

  • DFI routinely samples products for food borne pathogens prior to harvest; the testing is carried out by third-party labs.
  • The company’s internal sampling of the cartons involved in the recall were negative for Salmonella.
  • USDA found Salmonella on a single sample of cantaloupe during routine testing conducted at a wholesale produce distribution center (terminal market).
  • DFI, in consequence, recalled approximately 28,000 cartons of cantaloupes packed on August 26, 2012 as a precaution.

As so often happens in today’s world of sub-distributors and further processors, the DFI recall triggered others – including a September 13th recall announcement from Cut Fruit Express, Inc. (Inver Grove Heights, MN) and several supermarket chains. This time, though, there was an unusual wrinkle to the story.

Yesterday morning (Sept. 18th), I received an email from the Director of Quality Systems at one of the affected companies. This person had just been advised by their supplier that Salmonella had been found on the knife used to sample the DFI cantaloupe, and that DFI had been “cleared.” Naturally, my correspondent was eager to get to the bottom of this. As was I.

While my correspondent checked with FDA and with DFI, I queried USDA. Both FDA and DFI responded that the rumor was false; DFI even commented that they had heard the same rumor the day before from a different source.

Today, I received the following detailed reply from Shayla Mae Bailey, from the USDA Agricultural Marketing Services’ Public Affairs desk:

I received your inquiry about the DFI Cantaloupe recall, and spoke with the MDP program about the rumors surrounding the lab’s results. Below is more detail about how samples are handled during our testing.

The Microbiological Data Program (MDP) recently reported a positive Salmonella enteritidis detection in cantaloupe to the Food and Drug Administration. The cantaloupes were distributed by the firm, DFI Marketing, Inc. of California, and were collected and tested in Colorado. Questions have surfaced about the validity of MDP’s reported results, especially in regard to sample handling and possible control contamination. MDP stands by its results. To ensure the reliability of results MDP relies on the expertise of trained State Department of Agriculture sample collectors.

Collectors follow standard operating procedures (SOPs) and use aseptic technique (one-time use sterile gloves and sterile collection bags) when collecting samples for MDP. Collected samples are properly packaged and shipped the same day for overnight delivery to a MDP testing laboratory. After chain-of-custody receipt requirements are met, experienced laboratory personnel also use aseptic technique and follow SOPs to prepare samples for testing. To remove the chance for contamination, no cutting or slicing occurs for any MDP samples prior to or during any testing procedures.

When a positive is initially detected, MDP requires additional confirmation and this usually involves as many as five additional tests to be performed on the positive samples. In addition to the multiple confirmatory tests, MDP requires the laboratories to use special fluorescent-tagged controls throughout all testing procedures. These fluorescent-tagged controls allow for quick identification and also insures that a positive detection is a true result and not a control contamination. All MDP laboratories have achieved ISO 17025 certification and follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines for handling bacterial pathogens. For more details on MDP testing procedures, SOPs are accessible online at the website, www.usda.ams.gov/mdp.

Bottom line: The USDA stands by its results. The rumor is false. The recall is real.