A Miami, FL company is recalling approximately 377,000 lbs. of spice blends containing curry powder after testing found elevated levels of lead. The testing was completed by the NY Health Department.
Two weeks back, turmeric was recalled because of elevated lead levels, also discovered by the NY Health Department laboratory. Companies selling spices may want review their supply chain to see where there may be spices that are subject to high lead levels.
FDA Recall Notice
http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm517333.htm
Oriental Packing Co. Inc. Issues Alert On Lead In Curry Powder
For Immediate Release
August 18, 2016
Friday, August 19, 2016
Wednesday, August 17, 2016
Hepatitis Outbreak in Hawaii Linked to Raw Scallops
Raw sea scallops served at a sushi restaurant in Hawaii are being blamed for over 200 cases of Hepatitis A. This is one of the largest Hepatitis A cases in the US in the last 20 years.
While sushi grade seafood must be frozen in order to kill parasites, this freezing process will not eliminate bacteria and viruses.
The scallops are reported to have been sourced from the Philippines.
While sushi grade seafood must be frozen in order to kill parasites, this freezing process will not eliminate bacteria and viruses.
The scallops are reported to have been sourced from the Philippines.
Thursday, August 11, 2016
Texas Firm Recalls Ground Meat Due to Complaint of Metal in Product
A Texas firm is recalling 60, 350 lbs of ground meat after a complaint was made from someone who found a piece of metal. Unfortunately, the FSIS news release does not say what conditions, in addition to one complaint, were present to necessitate such a huge recall. Were there more complaints logged in the companies consumer complain file, was there a non-conformance on metal detectors checks or grinder plate checks, or was there a noticeable metal issue in the facility?
Good reminder to have proper checks in place for metal.
FSIS Recall Notice
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/recalls-and-public-health-alerts/recall-case-archive/archive/2016/recall-071-2016-release
Sam Kane Beef Processors, LLC Recalls Ground Beef Products Due To Possible Foreign Material Contamination
Class II Recall 071-2016
Health Risk: Low Aug 10, 2016
Good reminder to have proper checks in place for metal.
FSIS Recall Notice
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/recalls-and-public-health-alerts/recall-case-archive/archive/2016/recall-071-2016-release
Sam Kane Beef Processors, LLC Recalls Ground Beef Products Due To Possible Foreign Material Contamination
Class II Recall 071-2016
Health Risk: Low Aug 10, 2016
Sunday, August 7, 2016
Alfalfa Sprouts Recalled After Linked to Salmonella Outbreak
Alfalfa sprouts from a Denver, CO facility have been liked to 30 cases of Salmonella infection spread over 9 states. The company has issued a recall.
CDC Outbreak Notice
http://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/reading-08-16/index.html
Multistate Outbreak of Salmonella Reading and Salmonella Abony Infections Linked to Alfalfa Sprouts
August 5, 2015
CDC Outbreak Notice
http://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/reading-08-16/index.html
Multistate Outbreak of Salmonella Reading and Salmonella Abony Infections Linked to Alfalfa Sprouts
August 5, 2015
Friday, August 5, 2016
Cyclosporiasis Outbreak Reported in Texas
Texas is facing another outbreak of cyclosporiasis with 66 cases now reported across the state. In 2013, a nationwide outbreak of cyclosporiasis resulted in over 600 becoming ill. In 2015, cyclospora contaminated cilantro resulted in over 450 becoming ill.
The parasitic agent, cyclospora, contaminates produce through the use of contaminated water. Symptoms last about a week or so and symptoms include watery diarrhea, with frequent, sometimes explosive, stools, and in general, just feeling like heck (tired, bloated, slight fever, etc). It can be a much bigger issue for those with compromised immune systems.
NBC 5 Dallas Fort Worth, TX
Source: Cyclospora Found in North Texas Counties Likely Food Borne | NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/health/Cyclospora-Found-in-North-Texas-Counties-Likely-Food-Borne-389100491.html#ixzz4GT0tQSl1
Cyclospora Found in North Texas Counties Likely Food Borne By Frank Heinz
The parasitic agent, cyclospora, contaminates produce through the use of contaminated water. Symptoms last about a week or so and symptoms include watery diarrhea, with frequent, sometimes explosive, stools, and in general, just feeling like heck (tired, bloated, slight fever, etc). It can be a much bigger issue for those with compromised immune systems.
NBC 5 Dallas Fort Worth, TX
Source: Cyclospora Found in North Texas Counties Likely Food Borne | NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/health/Cyclospora-Found-in-North-Texas-Counties-Likely-Food-Borne-389100491.html#ixzz4GT0tQSl1
Cyclospora Found in North Texas Counties Likely Food Borne By Frank Heinz
PA Distributor Recalls Frozen Green Beans Due to Listeria
A Pennsylvania distributor of frozen foods is recalling frozen green beans for Listeria. The recall was issued after their customer, a manufacturing company, tested and found Listeria in the product. It appears that JBL is just a distributor, so there may be a bigger supply chain involved going back to the company that produced and/or packaged the product. It appears from the expiration date that this product was packed last year, so could be linked to the CRF recall?
FDA Recall Notice
http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm515115.htm
JML Ingredients Recalls IQF Cut Green Beans Because Of Possible Health Risk
For Immediate Release
July 22, 2016
FDA Recall Notice
http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm515115.htm
JML Ingredients Recalls IQF Cut Green Beans Because Of Possible Health Risk
For Immediate Release
July 22, 2016
Thursday, August 4, 2016
Warning Letter Issued to WA State Frozen Food Processor Responsible for Listeria Related Recall
FDA issued a warning letter in response to Oregon Food Company correction of inspection items as part of the Listeria recall of frozen produce. A few things to note 1) the number of the issues the facility had in the inspection and the fact that they had a pretty big Listeria issue, and 2) their responses were rejected because while the facility addressed items they had to fix, they did not show that the fixes actually worked and that they implemented procedures for ongoing verification. This is a good lesson in the issues that the plant faced, but also in how to, or how not to, respond to a FDA 483 report.
First, the letter points out that FDA found 19 Listeria positive environmental samples with 7 of those being food contact surfaces including a chiller water system (that did not have sanitizer). These samples were linked via Whole Genome Sequencing to clinical isolates. While the firm corrected the facility issues, FDA stated that this was not enough. "While we acknowledge these are appropriate actions to be taken, we are unable to fully evaluate the adequacy of these actions at this time without further details, documentation and results of your corrective actions." So basically, they want to see results from extensive sampling, including when the plant is operating, that the organism is not present.
The facility had many condensation issues, which is not good from controlling Listeria. While the facility responded that they fixed sources of condensation, FDA responded "how you will assess whether this correction and the [fixes] are effective in minimizing the condensation above food and food contact surfaces. Your response does not address how to you will prevent future recurrence of this violation, such as through increased monitoring and assessment."
First, the letter points out that FDA found 19 Listeria positive environmental samples with 7 of those being food contact surfaces including a chiller water system (that did not have sanitizer). These samples were linked via Whole Genome Sequencing to clinical isolates. While the firm corrected the facility issues, FDA stated that this was not enough. "While we acknowledge these are appropriate actions to be taken, we are unable to fully evaluate the adequacy of these actions at this time without further details, documentation and results of your corrective actions." So basically, they want to see results from extensive sampling, including when the plant is operating, that the organism is not present.
On GMP issues, the facility was found to be not as clean as it should have been. While the plant indicated it trained the employees, FDA found the response lacking. ."your response did not provide any details as to the content of this training or how you will ensure this training is effective by assessing and monitoring employee performance and adherence to the training."
The facility had many condensation issues, which is not good from controlling Listeria. While the facility responded that they fixed sources of condensation, FDA responded "how you will assess whether this correction and the [fixes] are effective in minimizing the condensation above food and food contact surfaces. Your response does not address how to you will prevent future recurrence of this violation, such as through increased monitoring and assessment."
The facility had poorly made food contact surfaces that would provide harborage. While the facility had repaired the surfaces, FDA responded "you provided no documentation or details on how you will ensure the repairs are adequate. Your response does not address how you will prevent future recurrence of this violation. "
In addition, there were steam ventilation issues and general facility issues. Again, fixes were made, but the outcome of those fixes and measures to prevent reoccurrence were not addressed.
FDA Warning Letter
Oregon Potato Company 7/15/16
Organic Cheese Products Recalled After Linked to E. Coli Outbreak
Grassfield Cheese Company is recalling organic cheese products sold in Whole Foods and its own store in MI after the product was linked to an E. coli STEC outbreak where 7 people become ill. Product was shipped into the Southeast and Midwest.
FDA Recall Notice
http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm514967.htm
Grassfields Cheese Recall Affects Select Whole Foods Market Locations; Grocer Recalls Product from Cheese Departments
FDA Recall Notice
http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm514967.htm
Grassfields Cheese Recall Affects Select Whole Foods Market Locations; Grocer Recalls Product from Cheese Departments
Contamination Rates on Cucumbers, Hot Peppers, and Raw Milk Cheese from FDA Sampling
FDA released testing results for 3 commodity items they have been testing - Cheese made from raw milk and aged for 60 days, cucumbers, and hot peppers.
While the testing is still ongoing, the results they have to date:
Aged raw milk cheese - 1606 samples in 2014 and 2015, less than a one percent contamination rate for Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes, E. coli O157:H7 and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli., and the overall contamination rate for generic E. coli was 5.4 percent. (See chart below)
Hot peppers - 452 samples taken with 13 of those samples positive for Salmonella (2.8% ) and no samples were positive for STEC E. coli.
Cucumbers - 352 samples taken with 3 of those samples positive for Salmonella (0.8%) and no samples were positive for STEC E. coli
Surprising...not so much for the produce. Hot peppers and cucumbers grow near or on the soil and are subject to contamination from soil and animals such as birds. Hopefully, and this is a good reminder, these items should be washed before consumption in order to reduce the risk. Peeling and other processing steps will also reduce or eliminate the contamination. And it is also important to remember that just because the organism is there, it doesn't mean someone will get sick. Something the contamination is sufficiently low that a person's immune system will handle it, or the specific species found may not be overly virulent.
As for cheese, this is going to be eaten as is, so this may be a bit more concerning. Here, you are relying on the producing company to have good practices in place. So raw milk cheese can be a risk, although low.
FDA News Release
http://www.fda.gov/Food/NewsEvents/ConstituentUpdates/ucm512225.htm
FDA Shares Completed Survey and Data from Ongoing Sampling Program
While the testing is still ongoing, the results they have to date:
Aged raw milk cheese - 1606 samples in 2014 and 2015, less than a one percent contamination rate for Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes, E. coli O157:H7 and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli., and the overall contamination rate for generic E. coli was 5.4 percent. (See chart below)
Hot peppers - 452 samples taken with 13 of those samples positive for Salmonella (2.8% ) and no samples were positive for STEC E. coli.
Cucumbers - 352 samples taken with 3 of those samples positive for Salmonella (0.8%) and no samples were positive for STEC E. coli
Surprising...not so much for the produce. Hot peppers and cucumbers grow near or on the soil and are subject to contamination from soil and animals such as birds. Hopefully, and this is a good reminder, these items should be washed before consumption in order to reduce the risk. Peeling and other processing steps will also reduce or eliminate the contamination. And it is also important to remember that just because the organism is there, it doesn't mean someone will get sick. Something the contamination is sufficiently low that a person's immune system will handle it, or the specific species found may not be overly virulent.
As for cheese, this is going to be eaten as is, so this may be a bit more concerning. Here, you are relying on the producing company to have good practices in place. So raw milk cheese can be a risk, although low.
FDA News Release
http://www.fda.gov/Food/NewsEvents/ConstituentUpdates/ucm512225.htm
FDA Shares Completed Survey and Data from Ongoing Sampling Program
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