Recalls and Alerts: December 19 – 21, 2019

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

OUTBREAK ALERT: CDC is investigating a deadly outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes infections linked to hard-boiled eggs produced by Almark Foods of Gainesville, Georgia. Seven cases have been reported from five states; 4 people have been hospitalized, and one person has died. See below for a link to the Almark Foods recall notice.

Allergy Alert: Whole Foods Market recalls 365 Everyday Value Dark Chocolate Peppermint Sandwich Cremes (Best by dates through May 1, 2020; UPC 9948247605) and 365 Everyday Value Dark Chocolate Caramel Sea Salt Sandwich Cremes (Best by dates through May 9, 2020; UPC 9948247606) due to undeclared milk or coconut.

Food Safety Recall: Advance Pierre Foods recalls approximately 15,739 pounds of ready-to-eat (RTE) beef patty products due to possible foreign matter (small, green soft plastic pieces) contamination. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected product.

Food Safety Recall: Ashland Sausage Co. recalls BERKSHIRE NATURAL CASING SAUSAGE (12-oz. plastic packages containing 5 pieces; Lot code S318) due to possible foreign matter (hard, dark plastic) contamination.

Food Safety Recall: Emesa Foods recalls Premium Sesame Tahini (800g; Expiration date 2/25/2021; UPC 850005298267) due to potential Salmonella contamination.

Food Safety Recall: Alli & Rose, LLC recalls approximately 21,930 pounds of Siluriformes (catfish) products that were not presented for import re-inspection. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall: Montpak International Inc recalls approximately 2,804 pounds of veal and lamb products that were not presented for import re-inspection into the United States. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall: Almark Foods recalls Hard-Boiled and Peeled Eggs in white plastic pails with white plastic lids due to potential Listeria monocytogenes contamination. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Canada

OUTBREAK ALERT UPDATE: PHAC reports 25 E. coli O157:H7 illnesses across 7 provinces linked to Fresh Express brand Sunflower Crisp Chopped Salad Kits. The salad kits contain romaine lettuce from the Salinas, California growing area.

Allergy Alert: Whole Foods Market recalls 365 Everyday Value Dark Chocolate Peppermint Sandwich Crèmes (220g; All Best By dates up to and including May 1, 2020; UPC 0 99482 47605 2) and 365 Everyday Value Dark Chocolate Caramel Sea Salt Sandwich Crèmes (220g; All Best By dates up to and including May 9, 2020; UPC 0 99482 47606 9) due to undeclared milk.

Allergy Alert: Speers Meats & Delicatessen recalls Mealie Pudding (150-250g; All Packed On dates after 19.SE.17) due to undeclared gluten.

Food Safety Recall: La Panchita (MDC International) recalls various soups that were not processed or packaged under conditions that ensure product safety. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Europe

Allergy Alert (Belgium): Albert Heijn recalls mini gourmet groenteburgers / vegetarian burgers (180g; Best before 06/01/2020 & 16/01/2020) due to undeclared mustard.

Allergy Alert (Belgium): SoFine recalls SoFine brand SOCHICKEN STICKS (160g; Best before 30/12/2019) due to undeclared mustard.

Allergy Alert (Germany): Sofine Foods B.V. recalls three SoFine brand vegetarian products due to undeclared mustard. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Allergy Alert (Ireland): Sacla UK recalls various pesto products due to undeclared peanuts. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Allergy Alert (Ireland): SuperValu recalls SuperValu Fruit Cake (450g; Batch code 352; Best before 26.02.2020) due to undeclared almonds.

Allergy Alert (Luxembourg): SoFine recalls SoFine brand SoChicken Sticks (160g; Best before 14/01/2020) and SoFine brand Veggie Nuggets (160g; Lots 301219 & 030120) due to undeclared mustard.

Allergy Alert (Netherlands): Molenaartje recalls Molenaartje volkoren spelt biscuit (200g; Best before 01/12/2020) and Molenaartje volkorenbiscuit (200; Best before 01/12/2020) due to undeclared mustard.

Allergy Alert (Netherlands): SoFine Foods BV recalls ProLaterre® Vegan Nuggets (Best before 14-01-2020) due to undeclared mustard.

Allergy Alert (Netherlands): SoFine recalls three SoFine brand vegetarian products due to undeclared mustard. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Allergy Alert (UK): Sacla’ recalls various pesto products due to undeclared peanuts. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall (Belgium): Industry recalls Baltique saumon fumé and Traiteur saumon fumé (200g; Best before 21/12/2019, 22/12/2019, 25/12/2019, 26/12/2019, 27/12/2019, 28/12/2019, 29/12/2019, 31/12/2019 & 02/01/2020) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Germany): Fleischerei Blässe recalls various sausage products due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall (Italy): MACELLERIA PERUCCHETTI GIUSEPPE & C SNC recalls SALAME (400/500g; Lot #B03-10-19) due to Salmonella contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Netherlands): Oudwijker Kaas recalls certain batches of Oudwijker Fiore cheese and Oudwijker Stella cheese due to Listeria contamination. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected batch codes.

Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands

Food Safety Recall (Hong Kong): Classic Fine Foods (Hong Kong) Limited recalls Saumon Fume Ecosse T. Main Ficelle (1.8kg; Best before December 31, 2019; Product of France) due to Listeria monocytogenes contamination.

Australia and New Zealand

Allergy Alert (Australia): David Jones Pty Limited recalls David Jones Almond Roughs (Best before 9th June 2020) due to undeclared peanuts and David Jones Peanut Caramel Clusters (Best before 9th June 2020) due to undeclared almonds.

Allergy Alert (Australia): Babilhara Lebanese Pastries and Sweets recalls Baklava and Pistachio Baklava (250g; Best before 16/10/2020) due to undeclared peanuts.

Allergy Alert (Australia): Coal River Farm Investments Pty Ltd recalls various chocolates (All products, all November/December Batches – dates up to 15 Dec 2019) due to undeclared milk and soy. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Recalls and Alerts: November 21 – 23, 2019

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United States

PUBLIC HEALTH ALERT: USDA, FDA, and CDC warn public not to consume products containing romaine lettuce grown in the Salinas, California growing region due to a risk of E. coli O157:H7 contamination. Lettuce from this growing region has been linked to an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 illnesses.

Allergy Alert: Euroline Foods LLC recalls DRY FRUIT MIX “QUINCE COMPOTE” (17.65oz / 500g; Container code 27032019; UPC 4605932006203) due to undeclared sulphites.

Allergy Alert: Whole Foods Market recalls Whole Foods Market Raspberry Cheesecake Italian Gelato (1 pt; Best by 6/11/2021; UPC 9948248024) due to undeclared egg.

Food Safety Recall: Missa Bay, LLC recalls approximately 75,233 pounds of salad products that contain meat or poultry because the lettuce ingredient may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall: Unilever United States recalls a limited quantity of Lipton, Knorr, and LeGoût chicken products that contain chicken from a supplier, which issued a recall on its poultry for potential contamination with Listeria monocytogenes. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall: Morris Meat Packing recalls approximately 515,000 pounds of various raw, intact pork products that were produced without the benefit of federal inspection and outside inspection hours. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall: Ajinomoto Foods North America, Inc. recalls AJINOMOTO YAKITORI CHICKEN WITH JAPANESE-STYLE FRIED RICE (54-oz pkgs; Date codes 3559007, 3559008, 3559015, 3559190 and 3559191; Best by 1/7/2020, 1/8/2020, 1/15/2020, 7/9/2020 and 7/10/2020) due to foreign matter (pieces of plastic) contamination.

Canada

Allergy Alert: Taza Food Products Ltd. recalls Taza Chat Papdi – Gram Flour Snack (360g; All units sold up to and including November 7, 2019; UPC 8 96546 00089 1) due to undeclared wheat.

Food Safety Recall: Boucherie Robert (Ma boucherie.ca) recalls Pesto maison (125 mL; All product sold up to and including November 22, 2019) due to lack of correct storage temperature labeling.

Food Safety Recall: Poissonnerie Odessa inc. recalls various smoked fish products that were produced and packaged under insanitary conditions or are lacking a label indicating correct storage temperature. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall: Industry recalls certain Bonduelle brand salads containing chicken or turkey due to possible E. coli O157:H7 contamination. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products. This recall appears to be related to the US outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 illnesses traced to contaminated romained lettuce from the Salinas, California growing region (see Public Health Alert, above). PHAC is advising consumers to avoid products that contain romaine lettuce from the Salinas growing region.

Food Safety Recall: Centre des viandes F. Iasenza recalls Saucisse Italienne séché Douce / Mild dry Italian sausage (4 pieces; Sold up to and including November 21, 2019) because the product was manufactured under insanitary conditions.

Europe

Allergy Alert (Belgium): EXKi recalls The EXKi Carrot (160g; Best before 23/11/2019) due to undeclared celery.

Allergy Alert (Belgium): Jumbo Belgique recalls Marc O’Deli brand fruits secs / dried fruits (250g; Lot #19435; Best before 19-10-2020) due to undeclared peanuts and sulphites.

Allergy Alert (Belgium): La société Abbot Kinney’s recalls Abbot Kinney’s brand Coco frost cacao (125 mL & 500 mL; Lots L9093 (125ml), L9094 (125 ml), L9199 (125ml), L9108 (500 ml); Best before 04/2021 & 07/2021) due to undeclared gluten.

Allergy Alert (France): Coursesu recalls Tallec brand Terrine chevreuil sauvage au madiran / Wild venison terrine (Sold between 13/11/19 & 21/11/19) due to undeclared allergens.

Allergy Alert (Germany): Abbot Kinney’s recalls Abbot Kinney’s brand Coco frost cacao (500 mL; Lot #L9108; Best before 17.04.2021) due to undeclared gluten.

Allergy Alert (Ireland): Centra recalls Centra Salmon Sensation (180g; Use by 28.11.2019) due to undeclared prawns and sulphur dioxide.

Allergy Alert (Luxembourg): EXKi recalls The EXKi Carrot (160g; Best before 23/11/2019) due to undeclared celery.

Allergy Alert (Netherlands): Jumbo recalls Jumbo spinach wrap tuna salad (Best before 27 November 2019) due to undeclared egg, fish and mustard.

Allergy Alert (UK – England and Wales specific): Aldi recalls Ashfield Farm British Breaded Chicken Steaks (505g; Batch code 29 Nov; Best before 29 November 2019) due to undeclared milk.

Allergy Alert (UK): Sainsbury’s recalls Sainsbury’s Tomato & Basil Soup (600g; Use by 8 December 2019) due to undeclared gluten (wheat).

Food Safety Recall (Finland): Lidl Suomi Ky and SOK recall Isokari Smoked Salmon fillet (750g; Best before 29.11.2019) and Rainbow Smoked Salmon fillet (250g; Best before 29.11.2019) due to a batch processing error.

Food Safety Recall (Germany): Willms Weißwasser GmbH & Co. KG recalls certain sausage products due to Salmonella contamination. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall (Germany): Natur Fleischhandels GmbH recalls Pork sausage with garlic (~800g; Lot #20191024; Best before 11/29/2019) due to Listeria contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Italy): Selex SpA recalls COZZE CILENE SGUSCIATE PRECOTTE SURGELATE / Frozen, pre-cooked shelled Cilene (250g; Lot #RD17; Best before 03-2021) due to Salmonella contamination.

Food Safety Recall (Netherlands): Kitchen on a Mission recalls Forest Mushroom Tapenade (1Kg & 5Kg; All Best before dates up to and including December 26, 2019) due to Listeria contamination.

Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands

Food Safety Recall (Hong Kong): Wing Kee Product Ltd recalls organicgirl baby spring mix (5 ounces /142 g) due to potential E. coli O157:H7 contamination. Please see Public Health Alert, above for details on the linkage between romaine lettuce from the Salinas, California growing region and an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 illnesses in the USA.

Australia and New Zealand

Allergy Alert (Australia): David Jones Pty Limited recalls David Jones Vegetable Spring Rolls (240g; Use by 28/11/19) due to undeclared sesame.

BULLETIN: FDA names California romaine farm as CDC reports additional E. coli patients

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

They say the investigation is ongoing and more sources are possible, but as of this afternoon, the FDA is reporting traceback efforts in the ongoing E. coli outbreak linked to romaine lettuce has led to Adam Bros. Farm in Santa Maria, CA.

The outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7 has been confirmed in the sediment of an irrigation reservoir on the family-owned farm, according to officials from the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. During a hastily called news conference today the officials said they can’t yet say the outbreak is over, but it is definitely winding down.

The statistics above are for the United States as of Dec. 13. In Canada, as of Dec. 6, there had been 27 confirmed cases of E. coli illness investigated in Ontario (4), Quebec (19), New Brunswick (1), and British Columbia (3). The illnesses in British Columbia were related to travel to Quebec, Ontario, and the United States. Nine individuals have been hospitalized, and two individuals suffered from hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS), which is a severe complication that can result from an E. coli infection. No deaths have been reported. Individuals who became ill are between 2 and 93 years of age.

Seven more people have been confirmed infected since the CDC’s Dec. 6 update. Ian Williams, chief of the CDC’s Outbreak Response and Prevention Branch, Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases, said during the news conference that the most recent illness onset date was Nov. 16.

FDA officials said they are continuing to investigate how the E. coli came to be in the sediment of the irrigation pond. They stressed they are also continuing to test samples from other locations.

“As of Dec. 13, our investigation yielded records from five restaurants in four different states that have identified 11 different distributors, nine different growers, and eight different farms as potential sources of contaminated romaine lettuce,” FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said in a statement issued immediately after the news conference.

“Currently, no single establishment is in common across the investigated supply chains. This indicates that although we have identified a positive sample from one farm to date, the outbreak may not be explained by a single farm, grower, harvester, or distributor.”

Investigators collected samples from the Adam Bros. Farm on Nov. 27, said Stephen Ostroff, senior advisor to the FDA commissioner. The confirmed results from those tests sparked the news conference today.

Ostroff, the CDC’s Williams and two of FDA’s top officials — Deputy Commissioner Frank Yiannas and Kari Irvin, deputy director of the agency’s Coordinated Outbreak Response and Evaluation Network — all stressed the investigation is ongoing, with public health epidemiologists continuing to interview patients.

They said the current outbreak is different from the one earlier this year in more than one way. A different strain of E. coli O157:H7 is involved, according to whole genome sequencing.

Also, the current outbreak strain has not been found in water or sediment that is used by multiple growers. The first outbreak this year, which was associated with romaine from the Yuma, AZ, growing area, has been linked to open water in an open canal that runs between produce fields and a cattle feedlot.

Even though the current outbreak strain has only been confirmed on the Adam Bros. farm, investigators say is it likely additional entities will be implicated. One reason cited for that expectation is the rule of thumb that people generally don’t eat romaine just one time, or from just one source before becoming ill.

The CDC and FDA continue to urge consumers, restaurants, institutional kitchens and retailers to avoid romaine if its origin is not clearly visible on labels. The FDA did, however, remove three California counties from the list of implicated growing areas.

“Given the identification of the outbreak pathogen on the farm in Santa Barbara County, the farms identified in the traceback, and the fact that the lettuce on the market at the peak of the outbreak should be beyond shelf-life we feel there is no longer a reason for consumers to avoid romaine lettuce from San Luis Obispo, Santa Cruz, and Ventura Counties, in California, provided it was harvested after Nov. 23,” according to the FDA.

“If consumers, retailers, and food service facilities are unable to confirm that romaine lettuce products are from unaffected sources, we urge that these products not be purchased, or if the products have already purchased, they should be discarded or returned to the place of purchase.”

Both FDA and CDC credit the produce industry’s voluntary market withdrawal of romaine two days before Thanksgiving Day as having prevented additional illnesses. Officials say Adams Bros. Farms is cooperating with the FDA, allowing investigators to confirm that the farm hasn’t shipped any romaine lettuce since Nov. 20.