Recalls and Alerts: March 30–31, 2023

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.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please submit your request using the sidebar link.

United States

OUTBREAK INVESTIGATION: CDC and FDA are investigating an outbreak of Salmonella Infantis illnesses linked to an as-yet-undetermined brand of flour. Twelve individuals in eleven states have fallen ill, and three of the victims were hospitalized. Among the seven people interviewed so far, six of them reported eating raw dough or batter. Flour was the only common ingredient in the raw dough or batter.

Allergy Alert: Wellness Natural USA Inc. recalls SimplyProtein® Peanut Butter Chocolate Crispy Bar (part of a 15-count variety pack; Lot TN3005A; Best before 05 Jan 2024) due to undeclared cashews.

Food Safety Recall: Seven Seas International USA, LLC recalls Biltmore Smoked Sockeye Salmon (Lot code R4058; Best by April 14 2023) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

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Canada

Allergy Alert: Marché des rapides (Saint-Liguori, QC) recalls four products due to undeclared allergens. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Allergy Alert:  La sacrée gourmande inc. (Repentigny, QC) recalls three products due to undeclared allergens. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall: Komera Inc. recalls Komera Original Seasoned Hot Pepper Sauce (148 ml; All units sold up to and including March 30, 2023; UPC 6 27987 43939 7) due to risk of Clostridium botulinum. The recalled product was sold in Alberta, Manitoba, Quebec and online and may have been distributed in other provinces and territories.

Food Safety Recall: Les Coquineries (Saint-Agapit, QC) recalls Sandwich aux œufs / Egg sandwiches (Best before 04/04/23) due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall:  MobiloChef inc. (Montréal (Verdun), QC) recalls multiple Solution Gourmande brand prepared dishes due to lack of mandatory “Keep refrigerated” labeling. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall: Solstice Ciderworks recalls Solstice Ciderworks brand Haskap Cider (355 ml; Code 12 0123; UPC 0068441783755) due to bursting cans. The recalled product was sold in the Yukon.

Food Satey Recall: Les Aliments BCI Inc. recalls Various brands of Chicken Soup Products due to swollen cans. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products, which were sold nationally.

Food Safety Recall: Café Dei Campi (Montréal, QC) recalls Pesto (Units sold up to 31 March 2023) due to lack of mandatory “Keep refrigerated” labeling.

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Europe

OUTBREAK INVESTIGATION UPDATE (Multi-national): ECDC reports that an outbreak of Salmonella Virchow illnesses that began in 2017 is on-going. As of March 30, 2023, a total of 210 cases have been reported by Denmark (2), France (111), Germany (26), Ireland (4), the Netherlands (34), the UK (32), and the US (1). Kebab meat products containing contaminated chicken meat are the likely vehicles of infections, according to the ECDC.

Allergy Alert (Belgium): Athix BIO recalls Racines BIO brand Sucre de fleur de Coco / Coconut blossom sugar (480g; Lot F00401CS PA; Best before 03/07/2023) due to undeclared sulphites.

Allergy Alert (France): AUCHAN RETAIL SERVICES AUCHAN SAINT NAZAIRE recalls CHIPOLATAS EMBALLEES EN MAGASIN / Chipolata sausages wrapped in the store (Use by 26/04/2023) due to undeclared milk.

Allergy Alert (France): SOLINEST recalls CHUPA CHUPS brand Tubes Mini avec arômes naturels – Confiserie gélifiée acidulée aux goûts fruits / Tart jelly candy with fruit flavours (175g; Lots L2082, L2386 & L2421; Best before 28/02/2024, 30/09/2024 & 30/10/2024, respectively) due to undeclared gluten.

Allergy Alert (Ireland): FSAI warns consumers of the presence of fish (salmon) and cereals (gluten) in packages of Dega Paprykarz Szczecinski / Fish paste (250g) not labeled in English.

Allergy Alert (Sweden): Fjällbergets Bageri & Delikatesser AB recalls Swedish Protein Deli Cheese (Best before 2024-01-31) due to undeclared gluten.

Food Safety Recall (France): MBBS DISTRIBUTION recalls Le bio de Manon brand Maïs pop corn / Popcorn kernels (500g; Lot 1T23; Best before 31/01/2025) due to elevated aflatoxin.

Food Safety Recall (France): CHEVENET SARL recalls CHEVRIGNY CHEVENET brand FROMAGE de CHEVRE SEC / Goat cheese (Lots 087 & 065; Best before 15/05/2023 & 24/04/2023, respectively) due to shiga toxin-producing E. coli contamination.

Food Safety Recall (France): CHEVENET SARL recalls CHEVRIER des CRAYS – CHEVRIGNY brand FROMAGE de CHEVRE SEC / Goat cheese (Lots 061 & 062; Best before 17/04/2023 & 24/04/2023, respectively) due to shiga toxin-producing E. coli contamination.

Food Safety Recall (France): LIDL recalls Nautica brand Saumon fumé ASC de Norvège / Norwegian smoked salmon (4 slices – 140g; Lot G0540372; Use by 26/03/2023) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (France): SOBRAQUES DISTRIBUTION recalls ROQUEFORT SOCIETE brand fines découpes de Roquefort au lait cru de brebis surgelé / thin-cut Roquefort cheese made from raw sheep milk, frozen (500g; Lot L61821; Best before 30/08/2023) due to staphylococcal enterotoxin contamination.

Food Safety Recall (France): CENTRALE DE CHARCUTERIE recalls CHARLES DU FOREZ CHARCUTIER brand ROTI DE PORC CUIT SUPERIEUR S/VIDE / Cooked pork roast, vacuum-packed (0.400 kg; Lot 230733; Use by 10/04/2023) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Italy): Maxi DI SRL recalls GIOIA DI MARE brand GAMBERETTI BOREALI IN SALAMOIA / Northern shrimp in brine (225g; Lot L 510 WS-B; Use by 05/05/2023) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Luxembourg): EMO DISTRIBUTION S.à.r.l recalls Emo brand Cuisse de poulet / Chicken leg (Lot 3124005; Use by 04.04.2023) due to Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Australia and New Zealand

Allergy Alert (Australia): Spring Gully Foods Pty Ltd recalls OzEmite Yeast Spread Gluten Free (175g; Best before 28/04/25) due to undeclared gluten.

Food Safety Recall (Australia): Fleurieu Milk Company recalls Fleurieu Milk Company Pouring Cream (300ml, 1L, 2L and 10L; Use by 06.04.23, 07.04.23 and 08.04.23) due to E. coli contamination.

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Recalls and Alerts: March 28–29, 2023

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.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please submit your request using the sidebar link.

United States

OUTBREAK INVESTIGATION: FDA has initiated an investigation into a new outbreak of 12 cases of Salmonella Infantis not yet linked to a specific food source.

Allergy Alert: Salento Organics recalls various Dark Chocolate Fruit and Peanut Bites products due to undeclared milk. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Allergy Alert: North American Food Distributing Company, Inc recalls Kagome Worcester Sauce and Kagome Chuno Sauce (16.9 fl. oz) due to undeclared soy.

Allergy Alert: Gilster Mary Lee recalls HyVee Hamburger Chili Macaroni Skillet Meal (5.2 oz; Best by FEB 08 24 Y18; UPC 75450-08552) due to undeclared milk.

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Canada

Allergy Alert: Wonton King recalls certain Wonton King brand wonton products due to undeclared egg. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Allergy Alert: Green Sun Foods Inc. recalls Green Sun brand Dark Chocolate Covered Pineapple (91g; Lot PA013/01; Date code 2023 JL; UPC 6 28678 80203 2) due to undeclared milk.

Food Safety Recall: Lee’s Food Products Ltd. recalls China Lily brand Soya Sauce (483 ml; Date code 2024 JA 17; UPC 0 66748 11041 8) due to leaking and bulging bottles.

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Europe

Allergy Alert (Belgium): Jumbo recalls Jumbo brand Tortilla naturel XL (6 pieces – 370g; Lot L723054; Best before 26/8/2023) due to undeclared barley.

Allergy Alert (Finland): Lantmännen Cerealia Oy recalls GoGreen kokonaisia tattarisuurimoita / Whole buckwheat groats (400g; Best before 7 June 2024 and 31 July 2024) due to undeclared gluten.

Allergy Alert (Sweden): Lantmännen Cerealia recalls GoGreen Helt Bovete / Whole buckwheat (400g; Best before 07-06-2024 and 31-07-2024) due to undeclared gluten.

Food Safety Recall (Denmark): Biogan A/S recalls Biogan økologiske popcornmajs / Organic popcorn kernels (500g; Best before 01.10.2024) due to elevated aflatoxin.

Food Safety Recall (France): NOZEDIS INTERMARCHE MARMANDE  recalls STEACK HACHE A LA DEMANDE / Ground beef (Bulk; Lot 0919065071852; Sold 20/03/2023 to 24/03/2023) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (France): LA VIE CLAIRE recalls LA VIE CLAIRE brand SAUCISSON SEC NOISETTES / Dry sausage with hazelnuts (Lot 123066233; Use by 06/05/2023) due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (France): MOULIN MECKERT-DIEMER MOULIN DES MOINES recalls NATURALINE brand MAIS POP CORN / Popcorn kernels (500g; Lot 06723; Best before 08/03/2026) due to elevated aflatoxin.

Food Safety Recall (France): SOCIETE NOUVELLE GAST recalls GAST brand TETE ROULEE PISTACHEE / Rolled head cheese with pistachios (2 slices; Lot 23074; Use by 07/04/2023, 08/04/2023, 10/04/2023 & 11/04/2023) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Italy): Coppiello Giovanni recalls Buoni sapori brand Sfilaccio di cavallo / Horse sfilaccio (100g; All lots between 02/06/2023 and 13/08/2023) due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Italy): GABBA SALUMI SRL recalls SALAME CAMPAGNOLO / Country salami (400g; Lot 0312) due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Italy): Coppiello Giovanni recalls Sfilaccio equino / Horse sfilaccio (400g; All lots between 02/06/2023 and 13/08/2023) due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Italy): Coppiello Giovanni recalls Bernardini Gastone brand Sfilaccio di cavallo / Horse sfilaccio (100g; All lots between 02/06/2023 and 13/08/2023) due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Luxembourg): Fromagerie de Luxembourg recalls Fromagerie de Luxembourg brand Mozzarella salami (1 kg; Lots 0545015211001314032023, 0545015211001315032023, 0545015211001317032023, 0545015211001320032023 & 0545015211001316032023; Use by 25/04/2023, 26/04/2023, 27/04/2023, 28/04/2023 & 01/05/2023) due to foreign matter contamination (metal pieces).

Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands

Food Safety Recall (Hong Kong): Galleon International Limited recalls Beck brand German Suckling Pig Cured Ham Cooked (Sliced) (180g; Best before May 1, 2024; Product of Germany) due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Singapore): Eu Yan Sang (Singapore) Pte Ltd recalls Eu Yan Sang’s Brown Rice Si Shen powder (Batch 120 & 121; Expiry 13 May 2024 & 17 May 2024) due to elevated aflatoxin and arsenic

TAINTED formats 3
“Reads like a true crime novel” – Food Safety News

Interested in learning more about food safety and the history of foodborne disease outbreaks and investigations?

Click on the link to listen to a short excerpt, then follow the buy links to add a digital, print or audio copy to your personal library.

Chapter 6. Birth of a Pathogen

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Former FDA officials tell congressional committee that agency needs uninterrupted chain of command

This story by Coral Beach first appeared in Food Safety News and is reposted here with permission.

Three of FDA’s former food safety chiefs have come together today to submit comments to a U.S. House of Representative’s oversight committee focused on chain of command problems at the agency.

The former Food and Drug Administration officials who submitted the comments to the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Health Care and Financial Services for the Committee on Oversight and Accountability are:

  • Stephen Ostroff, M.D., Former FDA Deputy Commissioner for Foods and Veterinary Medicine and Acting Commissioner 2016-2018;
  • Michael R. Taylor, Former FDA Deputy Commissioner for Foods and Veterinary Medicine 2010-2016;
  • David Acheson, M.D., Former FDA Associate Commissioner for Foods 2007-2009.

While the comments submitted to the committee’s official record are made in the context of the 2022 infant formula crisis, which shed light on communication problems at the FDA, they focus on the overall problem of a lack of a clear chain of command for the agency’s foods program.

“The infant formula events are one sign that FDA has not accomplished the food safety transformation FSMA (the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2011) envisioned and is not organized for success on food safety, but there are many others,” the former FDA food safety leaders say in their comments. 

“The problems begin with the program’s low priority in the FDA commissioner’s office and include its fragmented organizational structure, insular culture, bureaucratic infighting, slow decision making, and failure to follow through on FSMA implementation.”

The comments repeatedly refer to the current FDA Commissioner Robert Califf and his apparent lack of willingness to effectively overhaul the food side of the FDA. The three former officials say Califf presides over an effective drug side of the agency, but they disagree with the commissioner’s handling of recommendations from an expert panel on how to make the food side of the agency work to ensure food safety.

“. . . they (the panel of experts) called for FDA to unify the program under a single leader with full line management authority to lead its essential culture change and program modernization,” the three former FDA deputy commissioners say in their comments.

“Inexplicably, FDA leadership has rejected this recommendation. . . Even more critically, the Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods (planned by Califf) does not even have authority over all of FDA’s human food components. That is because the large field-based units within FDA that manage food inspections, field laboratories, and import oversight – and consume some two-thirds of FDA’s food-related budget – remain organizationally separate, with no direct management accountability to the new deputy commissioner.”

The former FDA deputy commissioners say that Califf is focused on operations of the drug side of the agency — even though the FDA is responsible for more than 80 percent of the American food supply. They say the commissioner keeps pushing for an unrealistic option for the operation of the food side of the agency.

“The matrix management approach Dr. Califf touts from his private sector experience has been tried and failed at FDA, as we know from our personal experience and as exemplified by the lags in FDA’s action on infant formula,” according to the comments submitted to the committee hearing record.

“It is unclear why FDA leadership has rejected the recommendations of its stakeholders and independent experts who have deep experience and expertise on food matters.  One possibility is that, while the agency’s top leaders are highly expert in medical product oversight, they lack personal experience and expertise on food safety and what it will take to transform the Food Program’s culture and performance.

“Medical products certainly deserve all the attention they get at FDA, and for years that’s been the focus of FDA’s top leadership, which helps explain why food regulation has a lower priority within FDA and is chronically underfunded.  The focus of FDA leadership on medical products may also explain why the commissioner’s proposed reorganization of the Food Program is patterned after the model that works for drugs and other medical products but won’t work for food.”

The three former FDA deputy commissioners say quick action is required to ensure the safety of the country’s food supply and that Congress should step in if Commissioner Califf fails to take appropriate action.

“Ideally, the Commissioner would change course and replace the announced reorganization with one that truly unifies the Food Program and empowers the new deputy commissioner position.  Absent that, Congress must act by directing FDA to make these critical changes.  Or Congress could elevate and reset the Food Program by removing food from FDA altogether and creating a separate agency under a Commissioner for Food Safety and Nutrition,” the former deputy commissioners say. 

“With decisive action now, Americans can get the unified, efficient and forward-leaning food program they deserve and expect. With half steps, disunity and dysfunction that was so evident during the infant formula crisis will persist and history will surely repeat itself.”

TAINTED formats 3
“Reads like a true crime novel” – Food Safety News

Interested in learning more about food safety and the history of foodborne disease outbreaks and investigations?

Click on the link to listen to a short excerpt, then follow the buy links to add a digital, print or audio copy to your personal library.

Chapter 6. Birth of a Pathogen

TAINTED is available in digital format from all major on-line retailers. Press the button to go directly to your preferred digital bookstore.

Amazon
Apple
Barnes & Noble
Kobo
Smashwords
Chapters/Indigo