Sausage Product Recalled Due to Temperature Abused Rice Ingredient

A Texas company is recalling a Boudin, a sausage product made with cooked rice, after USDA found that the company did not properly handle the cooked rice from a temperature control standpoint.

Boudin is a Cajun type product that is a mixture of cooked rice, pork, and seasonings.  It may contain onions and green peppers.  The mixture is ground and stuffed into a sausage casing.    

One of the primary risks associated with temperature abused rice is Bacillus cereus.  B. cereus can cause illness when people ingest B. cereus cells (diarrheal syndrome) or by the toxin it produces (emetic syndrome).  In this particular case, the concern would be the emetic syndrome.  With this, the spore-forming organism is not destroyed when the rice is cooked, and then grows in the temperature-abused cooked rice.  As it grows to high numbers, it produces the toxin.  When the toxin containing food is eaten, it results in severe vomiting.  This toxin is heat stable..

 

From Bacillus cereus Food Poisoning and Its Toxin Authors: Schoeni, Jean L.; Lee Wong, Amy C.

Source: Journal of Food Protection®, Number 3, March 2005, pp. 448-648, pp. 636-648(13)

Foods implicated in emetic food poisonings include beef, poultry, vanilla sauce, pasteurized cream, milk pudding, pasta, and infant formulas (54, 94). However, the majority of cases have been associated with cooked rice dishes. Various studies reported that 10 to 100% of raw and cooked rice samples were contaminated with B. cereus (94). Contaminating organisms can multiply to large numbers after the rice is boiled, cooled, and held at room temperature.  Temperatures achieved during reheating are usually not sufficient to inactivate the heat-stable emetic toxin (49). Improper holding temperature of cooked foods is the most common factor associated with the emetic syndrome. An example of an emetic outbreak occurred in 1993 at two Virginia day care centers owned by the same provider. Rice was cooked and then cooled at room temperature before being refrigerated. The next morning, the rice was pan-fried with cooked chicken pieces, delivered to the day care centers,
held without refrigeration, and served without reheating. B. cereus was isolated from leftover chicken fried rice and from the vomitus of one child (7).

  
USDA News Release
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/recalls-and-public-health-alerts/recall-case-archive/archive/2014/recall-075-2014-release
Texas Firm Recalls Boudin Products Due To Possible Temperature Abuse

Class I Recall 075-2014

Health Risk: High Oct 30, 2014

Congressional and Public Affairs
Whitney Joy
(202) 720-9113

 

WASHINGTON, Oct. 30, 2014 – Carlton Foods, a New Braunfels, Texas establishment, is recalling approximately 25,764 pounds of fresh Boudin products, which were produced with pre-cooked rice that may have experienced temperature abuse and may contain an emetic toxin produced by Bacillus cereus, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.
The Boudin (sausage-like) products were produced on Aug. 22, 2014, through Oct. 17, 2014. The following products are subject to recall: [View Labels (PDF Only)]

• 12-oz. vacuum-packed packages of “RICHARD’S HICKORY SMOKED BOUDIN” 
• 12-oz. vacuum-packed packages of “RICHARD’S PREMIUM BOUDIN” 
• 12-oz. vacuum-packed packages of “RICHARD’S ‘HOT’ PREMIUM BOUDIN” 
• 16-oz. vacuum-packed packages of “RICHARD’S PREMIUM BOUDIN”
• 32-oz. vacuum-packed packages of “RICHARD’S CAJUN GRILLERS BOUDIN”

The products subject to recall bear the establishment number “EST. 1943” or “EST. 961” inside the USDA mark of inspection. Products with the EST. 961 inside the mark of inspection would also have NB printed on the label. “Sell By” dates for the recalled products range from Oct. 28, 2014, to Dec. 16, 2014. The products were shipped to retail locations in Louisiana and Texas.
The problem was discovered by FSIS personnel during a Food Safety Assessment. During production, FSIS personnel observed pre-cooked rice, a component of the Boudin, being held at unsafe temperatures which could result in the products containing an emetic toxin produced by Bacillus cereus.
Bacillus cereus is a type of bacteria that can be found in a variety of foods, particularly rice that has been stored too long at room temperature. Emetic toxins produced by Bacillus cereus are characterized by nausea and vomiting occurring within 30 minutes to six hours after consumption of contaminated foods.
FSIS and the company have received no reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products. Individuals concerned about an illness should contact a health care provider.
FSIS routinely conducts recall effectiveness checks to verify recalling firms notify their customers of the recall and that steps are taken to make certain that the product is no longer available to consumers. When available, the retail distribution list(s) will be posted on the FSIS website at www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls.
Media with questions regarding the recall can contact Tim Bruer, Chief Executive Officer, at (818) 415-7333. Consumers with questions regarding the recall can contact Randy Rust, President, at (830) 625-7583 ext. 109.
Consumers with food safety questions can &quotAsk Karen,&quot the FSIS virtual representative available 24 hours a day at AskKaren.gov or via smartphone at m.askkaren.gov. The toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline 1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854) is available in English and Spanish and can be reached from l0 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Eastern Time) Monday through Friday. Recorded food safety messages are available 24 hours a day. The online Electronic Consumer Complaint Monitoring System can be accessed 24 hours a day at: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/reportproblem.