Recall Roundup: January 5, 2011

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
  • Food Safety Recall: USDA releases retail distribution list for organic ground beef products recalled by First Class Foods, Inc. due to E. coli O157:H7 contamination.
  • Over-The-Counter Product Safety Recall: Triad Group (Hartland, WI) recalls all lots of Alcohol Prep Pads, Alcohol Swabs and Alcohol SwabSticks due to concerns about contamination with Bacillus cereus. The recalled covers both Sterile-marked and non-sterile products manufactured by Triad Group and marketed under the following private label brands: Cardinal Health, PSS Select, VersaPro, Boca/Ultilet, Moore Medical, Walgreens, CVS and Conzellin. Products covered by this recall were distributed in the USA, Canada and Europe.
Canada
  • Food Safety Recall: Wal-Mart Canada Corp. recalls Sprouters Northwest brand Deli Sprouts (5 oz.; UPC 0 33383 70267 4; sold up to and including January 3, 2011) because the product may be contaminated with Salmonella. The recalled sprouts were sold in Wal-Mart stores in British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan. Several illnesses have been linked to consumption of the sprouts in the USA, but there have been no associated illnesses reported in Canada.
  • Over-The-Counter Product Safety Recall: Triad Group (Hartland, WI) recalls all lots of Alcohol Prep Pads, Alcohol Swabs and Alcohol SwabSticks due to concerns about contamination with Bacillus cereus. The recalled covers both Sterile-marked and non-sterile products manufactured by Triad Group and marketed under the following private label brands: Cardinal Health, PSS Select, VersaPro, Boca/Ultilet, Moore Medical, Walgreens, CVS and Conzellin. Products covered by this recall were distributed in the USA, Canada and Europe.
Europe
  • Allergy Alert (France): Auchan recalls Auchan pork spring rolls and chicken spring rolls (Nems au Porc – Nems au Poulet; Best before 12 janvier 2011) because the product may contain undeclared shrimp, fish and crab meat.
  • Allergy Alert (UK): Denar Ltd. recalls Denar golden jumbo raisins (200g; Best before 31 January 2012) and Denar dried apricots (200g; Best before 30 October 2011), because the products contain undeclared sulphur dioxide.
  • Food Safety Recall (Denmark): Dalby Møkke A/S recalls organic oatmeal (Best before 29-11-2011) because the product may contain the mycotoxin deoxynivalenol. Recalled products were sold under the following brands: Dalby Mill, Best, First Price, Gammelby Mill, and Dawn.
  • Food Safety Withdrawal (UK): Wm. Morrison Supermarkets plc recalls all date codes of Morrisons Unsalted Pistachio Nuts in Shell, 280g because one batch of the nuts was found to contain aflatoxins at levels higher than the regulatory limits.
  • Over-The-Counter Product Safety Recall: Triad Group (Hartland, WI) recalls all lots of Alcohol Prep Pads, Alcohol Swabs and Alcohol SwabSticks due to concerns about contamination with Bacillus cereus. The recalled covers both Sterile-marked and non-sterile products manufactured by Triad Group and marketed under the following private label brands: Cardinal Health, PSS Select, VersaPro, Boca/Ultilet, Moore Medical, Walgreens, CVS and Conzellin. Products covered by this recall were distributed in the USA, Canada and Europe.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2011.0007): Foreign body (plum stone and peduncle) in low sweetened plum jam from Poland; distributed to the Czech Republic.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2011.0008): Mercury in frozen sliced blue shark (Prionace glauca) from Vietnam; distributed to Italy.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2011.0009): High content of DINP – di-isononyl phthalate (1.4 %) in lid of jars containing roasted red peppers from Turkey; distributed to Slovenia.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2011.0010): High content of lead in fruit yoghurt dessert for infants from the Czech Republic; distributed to Poland.

Australia and New Zealand

  • Allergy Alert (Australia): Coles recalls all date codes of Coles Frozen Crumbed Fish Fillets Lemon (1kg and 425g packs), because the product may contain undeclared peanuts.
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.

Recall Roundup: January 4, 2011

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: Crave Foods (Los Angeles, CA) recalls Crave Pies Chicken Mushroom Pie (6-lb cases containing 12 individual 4-oz packages), because the product contains undeclared monosodium glutamate (MSG). The recalled pies were produced between September 2010 and December 2010 and shipped to distribution centers in California and New York for further retail distribution.
  • Food Safety Recall: Sprouters Northwest, Inc. (Kent, WA) recalls all of its clover sprout and and clover mixed sprout products, because they may be contaminated with Salmonella. The recall was initiated after clover sprouts produced by Sprouters Northwest were linked to four cases of Salmonella Newport infections in Washington State and two cases in Oregon. The recalled sprouts were distributed to wholesalers, grocery stores – including QFC and Fred Meyer stores – and restaurants in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Alaska and British Columbia.
  • Food Recall: Price Chopper recalls Olivio Premium Spread, 15-ounce tub because droplets of water can surface in the container and may promote mold growth.
  • Food Recall: Food City recalls Food City Fat Free Yogurt, 32 oz (Exp. date 01/21/2011). No reason was given for the recall.
  • Pharmaceutical Product Safety Recall: The Ritedose Corporation recalls 0.083% Albuterol Sulfate Inhalation Solution, 3mL (25, 30, 60 unit dose vials), because the 2.5mg/3mL single use vials are embossed with the wrong concentration and represent a health hazard. The recalled products were distributed across the USA and in Puerto Rico.
  • Pharmaceutical Product Safety Recall: Cumberland Pharmaceuticals Inc. recalls 6 lots of Acetadote® (acetylcysteine) Injection after particulate matter was found in a small number of vials of the injectable pharmaceutical product.
  • Dietary Supplement Safety Recall: Drive Total Energy recalls Rock Hard Extreme and Passion Coffee dietary supplements after FDA finds undeclared sulfoaildenafil (an analogue of sildenafil) in the product.
  • Dietary Supplement Recall: Giant Eagle recalls Natures Basket Fiber Complex, 100-ct (all lots) due to mislabelling.
  • FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Tico’s Mexican Foods, Inc. (Denver, CO) that a September 2010 inspection revealed serious deviations from the Seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) Regulation.
Canada
  • Food Safety Recall: Sprouters Northwest, Inc. (Kent, WA) recalls all of its clover sprout and and clover mixed sprout products, because they may be contaminated with Salmonella. The recall was initiated after clover sprouts produced by Sprouters Northwest were linked to four cases of Salmonella Newport infections in Washington State and two cases in Oregon. The recalled sprouts were distributed to wholesalers, grocery stores – including QFC and Fred Meyer stores – and restaurants in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Alaska and British Columbia.
Europe
Latin America and the Caribbean
  • Pharmaceutical Product Safety Recall (Puerto Ric0): The Ritedose Corporation recalls 0.083% Albuterol Sulfate Inhalation Solution, 3mL (25, 30, 60 unit dose vials), because the 2.5mg/3mL single use vials are embossed with the wrong concentration and represent a health hazard. The recalled products were distributed across the USA and in Puerto Rico.
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.

Outbreaks and Alerts: January 3, 2011

A daily digest of international outbreaks, alerts and food safety news

United States
  • Multistate Outbreak. December 28th: Alfalfa sprouts from Tiny Green Organic Farm (Urbana, IL) have been blamed for an outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium (Salmonella I 4,[5],12:i:-), which has sickened at least 94 people in 16 states and the District of Columbia.

     

  • West Virginia. December 30th: Food Safety News reports that the Cabell-Huntington County Health Department has vaccinated 236 people after 11 individuals were infected with hepatitis A in the Milton, WV area. The source of the hepatitis outbreak has not been identified.

     

  • New York, NY. January 3rd: The Queen Mary 2, en route to New York from Southampton, was boarded in St. Kitts by an inspector from the CDC Vessel Sanitation Program after the cruise ship reporting that 185 passengers (out of a total of 2,483) and 29 crew members were suffering from diarrhea and vomiting.

     

Canada
  • Laval, QC. December 29th: The Cité-de-la-Santé Hospital in Laval has closed its doors to visitors in an attempt to control an outbreak of gastroenteritis that has affected both patients and staff at the hospital. Ambulances have been instructed to avoid the hospital until further notice.

     

  • Hamilton, ON. January 2nd: Clostridium difficile contributed to the death of a 91-year old woman at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Hamilton, bringing the total number of C. difficile related deaths at the facility to eleven since October 2010.

     

Europe
  • Swansea, Wales, UK. January 3rd: Managers at Morriston Hospital have closed seven wards and asked the public to avoid visiting the hospital as part of a program to contain an outbreak of norovirus gastroenteritis.

     

     

  • Bonn/Koblenz, Germany, January 3rd: A passenger who was infected with norovirus before boarding the Prinses Juliana has been identified as the source of an outbreak of gastroenteritis among passengers of the Rhine cruise ship. The ship was quarantined for one day after 50 of the ship’s 150 passengers developed diarrhea and vomiting.

     

  • Kalmykia, Russia. January 3rd: An emergency has been declared after veterinarians detected anthrax in meat from a slaughtered cow. Eight cases of human anthrax also are suspected, but have not yet been confirmed.

     

Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands
  • Hong Kong. December 30th: The Centre for Food Safety reports that fresh pig liver may be one of the sources of food-borne hepatitis E virus infections in Hong Kong, after determining that 16 out of 51 liver samples from roaster pigs were positive for the virus.

     

  • Beijing, China. December 31st: A random inspection of 35 rice noodle factories in Dongguan in early December revealed that only 5 of the 35 factories were manufacturing rice noodles that met government standards. Among the problems found during the inspections were noodles made with rotten grain and potentially carcinogenic additives.

     

  • Cebu, Philippines. January 1st: Twelve cases of diarrhea have been reported in Catmon (Cebu province). One person has died.

     

  • Harare, Zimbabwe. January 3rd: Cholera has been reported in at least 20 households in the Mbare suburb of Majubheki. According to news reports, the sewage system in Mbare has broken down, resulting in the contamination of drinking water with raw sewage.

     

  • Jakarta, Indonesia. January 3rd: Six members of one Central Java family died from apparent food poisoning after eating tiwul, a traditional dish made from dried cassava powder.

     

  • Papua New Guinea. January 3rd: PNG’s cholera outbreak has spread to another district in East Sepik, with at least 10 confirmed deaths. In a separate incident, a nurse at Port Moresy General Hospital became infected with cholera after coming into contact with a patient’s feces and vomit.

     

Latin America and the Caribbean

 

  • Jamaica. December 23rd: The Ministry of Health is investigating a possible case of food poisoning after eleven persons who shared a meal were taken to St. Ann’s Bay hospital. One of the eleven victims was dead on arrival, and the others received treatment. Samples of the meal were taken for testing, but no results have been released as of January 3rd.

     

  • Dominican Republic. December 30th: Vibrio cholerae, has been found in the drinking water of two villages adjacent to the border with Haiti. At least 20 people in the area are suffering from cholera-like symptoms; 139 cholera cases have been confirmed nationwide.

     

  • Tambor, Costa Rica. December 31st: Salmonella was found in a sample of chicken served at the Hotel Barceló Playa Tambor after 80 hotel guests complained of gastrointestinal symptoms. Nevertheless, none of the ill guests were found to be infected with Salmonella; instead, they were determined to be suffering from norovirus infections. The hotel was closed on December 26th as a result of the outbreak, and remained closed through the New Year’s weekend.

     

  • Bolivar, Colombia. December 31st: A possible cholera outbreak in temporary shelters in three municipalities has health authorities on the alert. The shelters were opened to house people who were forced to flee areas affected by flooding.

     

  • Haiti. December 31st: The death toll from Haiti’s cholera epidemic has reached 3,333; more than 150,000 infections have been reported.