Three Companies Recall Salted Plum Products Due to Lead Contamination

EL CHAVITO, INC. of San Diego, CA is recalling all lots of Saladitos Dried Salted Plums and Saladitos Enchilados Salted Plums With Chili because while La Fiesta Food Products, La Mirada California is recalling all lots of Saladitos Con Chile(Salted Plums with Chili) and A&E Corrales LLC, Seattle, WA is recalling Saladitos Dried Salted Plums With Chili because these products have the potential to be contaminated with lead.

No reason on how the lead was detected or where it originated.

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/el-chavito-inc-recalls-saladitos-dried-salted-plums-and-saladitos-enchilados-salted-plums-chili
El Chavito, Inc. Recalls Saladitos Dried Salted Plums and Saladitos Enchilados Salted Plums with Chili Because of Possible Health Risk

Summary

Company Announcement Date:  February 03, 2022

FDA Publish Date:  February 03, 2022

Product Type:  Food & Beverages

Reason for Announcement:  potential to be contaminated with lead

Company Name:  EL CHAVITO, INC.

Brand Name:  El Chavito®

Product Description:  Saladitos Dried Salted Plums and Saladitos Enchilados Salted Plums With Chili

Salad Dressings Recalled for Undeclared Egg

Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE: CAG), is voluntarily recalling a limited amount of Wish-Bone Thousand Island and Chunky Blue Cheese dressings due to egg in the product, which is not declared on the product label.  While there was no reason stated for how the error was identified or how it occurred, both products do contain egg yolk so it is likely that the wrong back label was applied.

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/conagra-brands-issues-voluntary-allergy-alert-undeclared-egg-wish-boner-thousand-island-and-chunky
Conagra Brands Issues Voluntary Allergy Alert on Undeclared Egg in Wish-Bone® Thousand Island and Chunky Blue Cheese Dressings
Summary
Company Announcement Date:  January 28, 2022
FDA Publish Date:  January 31, 2022
Product Type:  Food & Beverages
Reason for Announcement:  Undeclared egg
Company Name:  Conagra Brands, Inc.
Brand Name:  Wish-Bone
Product Description:  Salad dressings

Consumer Reports - Test Results for Frozen Produce

Consumer Reports released their testing results of frozen produce.  Nothing special to report regarding pathogens or nutrient quality.  Their testing did not yield any pathogenic bacteria.  Which we would generally expect.   From a nutrient perspective, they found that frozen is generally comparable to fresh.

That being said, it is always important to follow proper handling and preparation procedures.  From time to time, we can encounter contamination issues, such as with Listeria.  While the study did not look for viruses or parasites, and although a low risk, these too have been found.  https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/cyclosporiasis/outbreaks/foodborneoutbreaks.html

https://www.consumerreports.org/food-safety/are-frozen-fruits-and-vegetables-healthy-and-safe-a1002196402/
Are Frozen Fruits and Vegetables Healthy and Safe?
CR tested more than 300 samples of frozen produce for bacteria that commonly cause foodborne illness

"For our tests, we looked for E. coli, listeria, and salmonella, types of bacteria that commonly cause foodborne illness, in eight frozen categories—avocado, berries, corn, mangoes, peaches, pineapple, spinach, and smoothie mixes. In total, we included 369 items from big brands, private label, and store brands, including 365 by Whole Foods, Blendtopia, Birds Eye, Campoverde, Dole, Great Value, O Organics, and Trader Joe’s."

FSIS Issues Public Health Alert for Listeria-contaminated RTE Chicken Salad Produced by GA Establishment

USDA-FSIS issued a public health alert for ready-to-eat (RTE) chicken salad products produced by Simply Fresh Market, a Marietta, Ga after company tested product and found a sample positive for Listeria monocytogenes.   The RTE chicken salad with apples and walnuts items were produced on Jan. 17, 2022 and have an expiration date of January 25 [a date which has already passed].


https://www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls-alerts/fsis-issues-public-health-alert-ready-eat-chicken-salad-products-due-possible

FSIS Issues Public Health Alert for Ready-To-Eat Chicken Salad Products Due to Possible Listeria Contamination

WASHINGTON, Jan. 28, 2022 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is issuing a public health alert due to concerns that ready-to-eat (RTE) chicken salad products produced by Simply Fresh Market, a Marietta, Ga. establishment, may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. A recall was not requested because the known affected product is no longer available in commerce for consumers to purchase.

FDA Warning Letter - Fresh Cut Produce Facility

FDA issued a Warning Letter to Onofrio's Fresh Cut of New Haven CT, a produce processing facility for RTE fresh-cut produce (e.g., onions, peppers, celery, broccoli, cantaloupe, watermelon, and kiwi).  The FDA collected environmental samples from various areas in the processing facility and found Listeria monocytogens in several areas.

FDA stated issues with the Preventive Control Plan as well as with GMPs.  With regard to the Food Safety Plant, while the hazard analysis considered pathogen contamination at the cutting and assembling processing steps. it determined that a preventive control was not necessary due to CGMPs/SSOPs and a prior wash step. However, "RTE fresh-cut produce is exposed to the environment during cutting and assembly and does not receive a lethal treatment or otherwise include a control measure (such as a formulation lethal to the pathogen) that would significantly minimize the pathogen. Thus, environmental pathogens are a hazard likely to occur in the absence of preventive controls (i.e., sanitation controls)."

FDA’s current inspection included the collection of environmental swabs on July 13, 2021, during the production of RTE fruits and vegetables; four (4) of seventy-one (71) swabs were confirmed positive for L. monocytogenes. The positive findings include a mixing room floor drain adjacent to a table where RTE celery was being cut, forklift wheels, a wheel on a rolling cart holding shrimp and seafood salad ingredients, and a packing room broom handle

One item stated in the Warning Letter was a bit surprising in that FDA seems to be suggesting a Supplier Preventive Control for the produce.  The report stated that the company "did not establish supply-chain controls for pathogens such as L. monocytogenes, pathogenic E. coli, and Salmonella at the receiving step for incoming produce. [The] hazard analysis indicated that pathogens will be controlled at a later wash step. However, [the] produce wash does not effectively destroy pathogens on the whole produce, as indicated by an email on July 20, 2021, from a representative of [the] supplier of (b)(4) sanitizer, which is used in your produce wash."  This may be difficult if the company is bringing in raw, unwashed produce.

The facility had a number of GMP issues which would exasperate the situation.  Condensation, poor plumbing, inadequate cleaning of equipment (both contact and non-contact surfaces),  and poor food handling practices.


https://www.fda.gov/inspections-compliance-enforcement-and-criminal-investigations/warning-letters/onofrios-fresh-cut-inc-618502-01102022
WARNING LETTER
Onofrio's Fresh Cut, Inc.
MARCS-CMS 618502 — JANUARY 10, 2022

Birthday Cakes Recalled for Allergens After Packaged Wrong

Siren of San Francisco, CA is issuing a voluntary recall of Siren Birthday Cake 1.7oz Bites because they may contain undeclared cashews and almond butter.  Due to a consumer notification about an allergic reaction, the recall was initiated after it was discovered that product containing cashew and almond butter was distributed in packaging that did not reveal the presence of cashew and almond butter on the ingredient deck.

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/siren-issues-voluntary-allergy-alert-undeclared-cashews-and-almond-butter-birthday-cake-bites
Siren Issues a Voluntary Allergy Alert on Undeclared Cashews and Almond Butter in Birthday Cake Bites
Summary
Company Announcement Date:  January 27, 2022
FDA Publish Date:  January 27, 2022
Product Type:  Food & Beverages
Reason for Announcement:  Undeclared Cashews and Almond Butter
Company Name:  Siren Snacks
Brand Name:  Siren
Product Description:  Birthday Cake Bites

Two Importers Receive Warning Letters for Lack of FSVP

FDA issued Warning Letters to two import companies for not having FSVP programs in place for the products they import.

Green Food Ingredients, LLC of Burr Ridge IL did not establish written procedures for ensuring that appropriate supplier verification activities are conducted in accordance with 21 CFR 1.506(b), and you did not document your determination of the appropriate supplier verification activity or activities in accordance with 21 CFR 1.506(d).

HK Produce Group Inc. DBA Y2S Trading Inc. of  Long Island City, NY 11101 received an inspection was initiated, in part, based on FDA samples finding Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes), a human pathogen, in four (4) entries of fresh enoki mushrooms.  Inspectors found the company did not develop, maintain, and follow an FSVP as required by section 805 of the FD&C Act and 21 CFR 1.502(a). Specifically, you did not develop an FSVP for any of the foods imported.

"This inspection was initiated, in part, based on FDA samples finding Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes), a human pathogen, in four (4) entries of fresh enoki mushrooms, three (3) of which were from (b)(4) located in (b)(4) and one (1) from (b)(4) located in (b)(4). The samples were collected from entries B7S-2105311-2, 677-0332940-8, 677-0332919-2 and B7S-2106092-7, all imported by your firm. We placed fresh enoki mushrooms from (b)(4) under Import Alert (IA) #99-23 “Detention Without Physical Examination of Produce Due to Contamination With Human Pathogens,” on July 20, 2021 and IA #99-35 “Detention Without Physical Examination of Produce That Appears To Have Been Prepared, Packed, Or Held Under Insanitary Conditions,” on November 1, 2021. "

https://www.fda.gov/inspections-compliance-enforcement-and-criminal-investigations/warning-letters/green-food-ingredients-llc-616669-10212021
WARNING LETTER
Green Food Ingredients, LLC

Gogi Berry Snacks Recalled After State Lab Finds Undeclared Sulfites

BCS International Corp. Long Island City, NY, is recalling its 4.5 ounce, 6 ounce and 9 ounce containers and 5 pound packages of “Dr. Snack Goji Berry” food treats because they contained undeclared sulfites.  The recall was initiated after routine sampling by New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets Food Inspectors and subsequent analysis by Food Laboratory personnel revealed the presence of sulfites in “Dr Snack Goji Berry” which were not declared on the label. The consumption of 10 milligrams of sulfites per serving has been reported to elicit severe reactions in some asthmatics.  Analysis of the “Dr. Snack Goji Berry” revealed they contained 13.6 milligrams per serving.

CFR Title 21 Chapter I Subchapter B Part 130 Subpart A § 130.9 
(a) Any standardized food that contains a sulfiting agent or combination of sulfiting agents that is functional and provided for in the applicable standard or that is present in the finished food at a detectable level is misbranded unless the presence of the sulfiting agent or agents is declared on the label of the food. A detectable amount of sulfiting agent is 10 parts per million or more of the sulfite in the finished food.

FARP 
"Sulfites are also prohibited from certain uses in the U.S. Sulfites may not be used in products such as meats that serve as a good source of vitamin B1 because sulfites can scavenge that vitamin from foods. In 1986, following the identification of numerous cases of sulfite-induced asthma occurring on ingestion of green or fruit salads treated with sulfites, FDA prohibited the use of sulfites on fruits and vegetables intended to be served raw or presented fresh to the public (Fed. Regist. 51:25021-25026, 1986). The only exception is sulfite use on minimally processed potatoes sliced or shredded for frying where sulfite use is still permitted (although FDA has a long-standing, though never finalized, proposal to ban that use also). Sulfite use as a fungicide during the shipment of fresh table grapes is regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, but the concentration of SO2 residues on the table grapes as consumed must be <10 ppm total SO2."

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/bcs-international-corp-issues-alert-undeclared-sulfites-dr-snack-goji-berry
BCS International Corp. Issues Alert on Undeclared Sulfites in “Dr. Snack Goji Berry”
Summary
Company Announcement Date:  January 19, 2022
FDA Publish Date:  January 21, 2022
Product Type:  Food & Beverages
Reason for Announcement:  Undeclared sulfites
Company Name:  BCS International Corp.
Brand Name:  Dr. Snack
Product Description:  Goji berry

Frozen Chopped Spinach Recalled After Testing Finds Listeria

Frozen Food Development is voluntarily recalling specific lots of Lidl branded 12-ounce packages of Frozen Chopped Spinach because the product has the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.  The potential for contamination was noted after routine testing revealed the presence of Listeria monocytogenes in 12-ounce packages of Lidl Frozen Chopped Spinach.  The production of the product has been suspended while FDA and Frozen Food Development continue to investigate the source of the problem.  The recalled Frozen Chopped Spinach was distributed in Lidl retail stores in GA, SC, NC, VA, MD, DE, NY, NJ, and PA.

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/frozen-food-development-recalls-lidl-branded-chopped-spinach-because-possible-health-risk
Frozen Food Development Recalls Lidl Branded Chopped Spinach Because of Possible Health Risk
Summary
Company Announcement Date:  January 19, 2022
FDA Publish Date:  January 19, 2022
Product Type:  Food & Beverages
Reason for Announcement:  Listeria Monocytogenes
Company Name:  Frozen Food Development
Brand Name:  Lidl
Product Description:  Frozen Chopped Spinach