RECALL TRACKER: Keep Abreast Of Current Food Product Recalls
Every year, millions of pounds of food products are recalled for the suspected presence of food-borne pathogens. While the fact remains that most recalled products may not be contaminated, neither responsible companies nor the public want to take any chances with a product that might potentially contain pathogens. For this reason, when problems are suspected, many food companies, in an abundance of caution, will work closely with governmental agencies, such as the FDA and FSIS, to identify potential problems and define the parameters of voluntary recalls.
In the coming days, for instance, we will continue to watch as peanut butter recalls associated with the current Salmonella Typhimurium outbreak unfold. Currently, the list of potentially involved companies, selling products which reportedly utilized raw materials manufactured by the Peanut Corporation of America, include:
- King Nut Company (various bulk and other peanut butter products);
- Ralcorp Frozen Bakery Products (peanut butter cookies);
- South Bend Chocolate Comapny (various candy products);
- Kellogg Company (select peanut butter sandwich crackers and cookies);
- McKee Foods (Little Debbie peanut butter toasties and sandwich crackers);
- Perry's Ice Cream Company (select peanut butter ice cream products);
- Abott Nutrition (various chocolate peanut butter and toffee bars);
- Cliff Bar and Company (CLIF and LUNA branded snack bars);
- Kroger (certian peanut butter bars, cookies and ice cream);
- Mejjer (select crackers and ice cream); and
- Hy-Vee, Inc. (select bakery products).
Although time will tell whether only a few or more of these products may have potentially carried trace elements of the pathogen at issue, we should be thankful to the dedicated public health officials and responsible companies for proactively and quickly identifying this emerging issue, and voluntarily removing these products from commerce. Stay tuned as additional news develops.
