CR - 10 Risky Recalled Foods

Consumer Reports lists the 10 Foods Linked to Serious Recalls and Outbreaks and provides an explanation why each ended up there. They also provide some practical handling procedures

1. Leafy Greens
2. Cheeses and Deli Meat
3. Ground Meat 
4. Onions
5. Turkey
6. Chicken
7. Papayas
8. Peaches
9. Cantaloupe
10. Flour

While we can argue about what should be in the Top Ten, the information provided in this report is okay. 

The danger of any list like this is that people will avoid products because it is on 'the list'.   Onions for example...one should not avoid using onions, but follow practical handling procedures.  On the avoidance of pre-cut fruit...certainly if you are extremely risk averse, you would want to avoid pre-but fruit, otherwise, the overall risk is small when purchasing from a reputable producer.

A much better write-up than done in the past by this organization.

10 Risky Recalled Foods You Should Know About - Consumer Reports

Chocolate Bars From Costco Recalled Due to Undeclared Tree Nuts - Cashews

Wellness Natural USA Inc. of Wilmington, DE is voluntarily recalling a single lot of its SimplyProtein® Peanut Butter Chocolate Crispy Bar in the United States, which is sold in a 15-count variety pack that contains two other flavors, because it may contain an undeclared trace of tree nuts (cashews).   The recalled products were distributed in the United States in limited Costco stores in Arkansas, California, Washington DC, Kansas, Maryland, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia.  The recall was voluntarily initiated due to a consumer complaint, which is the only reported reaction to date, and a determination that the lot may have the potential to contain trace levels of undeclared cashew. The cause of the contamination is being investigated.

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/wellness-natural-usa-inc-issues-allergy-alert-undeclared-cashews-simplyproteinr-peanut-butter
Wellness Natural USA Inc. Issues Allergy Alert on Undeclared Cashews in SimplyProtein® Peanut Butter Chocolate Crispy Bars
Summary
Company Announcement Date:  March 31, 2023
FDA Publish Date:  April 03, 2023
Product Type:  Food & Beverages
Reason for Announcement:  Undeclared tree nuts (cashew)
Company Name:  Wellness Natural USA Inc.
Brand Name:  SimplyProtein
Product Description:  Peanut Butter Chocolate Crispy Bar

FL Company Recalls Smoked Salmon After State Testing Finds Listeria

Seven Seas International USA, LLC of St. Petersburg, Florida is voluntarily recalling 295 cases of Biltmore Smoked Sockeye Salmon with production lot R4058 because Listeria monocytogenes may be present in some product. The issue was discovered through routine regulatory testing conducted by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.  This product was distributed through Publix Supermarket.


https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/seven-seas-international-usa-llc-voluntarily-recalling-biltmore-smoked-sockeye-salmon-because
Seven Seas International USA, LLC is Voluntarily Recalling Biltmore Smoked Sockeye Salmon Because of Possible Health Risk
Summary
Company Announcement Date:  March 14, 2023
FDA Publish Date:  March 31, 2023
Product Type:  Food & Beverages  Fish
Reason for Announcement:  Potential Foodborne Illness/Listeria
Company Name:  Seven Seas International USA, LLC.
Brand Name:  Biltmore
Product Description:  Biltmore Smoked Wild Sockeye Salmon
Company Announcement  Date: March 14, 2023

Illinois Food Company Recalls Hamburger Skillet Meal After Mispacking Results in Undeclared Milk

Gilster Mary Lee, an  Illinois food company, is recalling one lot of HyVee Hamburger Chili Macaroni Skillet Meal, UPC 75450-08552 at the consumer level because it may contain undeclared milk.  Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Gilster-Mary Lee Corp. became aware of the mispackaging after receiving an email from a customer. No illnesses have been reported to date in connection with this product.

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/gilster-mary-lee-corp-issues-recall-undeclared-milk-allergen-hyvee-hamburger-chili-macaroni-skillet
Gilster-Mary Lee Corp. Issues a Recall for Undeclared Milk Allergen in HyVee Hamburger Chili Macaroni Skillet Meal
Summary
Company Announcement Date:  March 28, 2023
FDA Publish Date:  March 29, 2023
Product Type:  Food & Beverages
Reason for Announcement:  Undeclared Milk Allergen
Company Name:  Gilster-Mary Lee Corp.
Brand Name:  HyVee
Product Description:  Hamburger Chili Macaroni Skillet Meal

CA Distributor Recalls Sauces Due to Undeclared Soy

A California food distributor is recalling imported Worcester Sauce and Chuno Sauce due to undeclared soy on the label. The recall was initiated after it was discovered that product containing Soy was distributed in packaging that did not reveal the presence of Soy allergen

It seems that the Fermented Seasoning would be the source of the soy.





https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/north-american-food-distributing-company-inc-issues-allergy-alert-undeclared-soy-169-fl-oz-kagome
North American Food Distributing Company, Inc. Issues Allergy Alert on Undeclared Soy in 16.9 Fl Oz of Kagome Worcester Sauce and 16.9 Fl Oz of Kagome Chuno Sauce
Summary
Company Announcement Date:  March 28, 2023
FDA Publish Date:  March 29, 2023
Product Type: Food & Beverages  Gravy/Sauces
Reason for Announcement:  Undeclared Soy
Company Name:  North American Food Distributing Company, Inc.
Brand Name:  Kagome
Product Description:  Worcester Sauce; Chuno Sauce

FL Company Recalls Dark Chocolate Bites for Undeclared Milk

Salento Organics of West Palm Beach, Florida is recalling its 4 ounce packages of Dark Chocolate Pitaya Bites, Dark Chocolate Goldenberry Bites, Dark Chocolate Mango Bites, Dark Chocolate Banana Bites, Dark Chocolate Pineapple Bites and Dark Chocolate Peanut Bites because they may contain undeclared milk.  The recall was initiated after it was discovered that the milk-containing product was distributed in packaging that did not reveal the presence of milk.  Subsequent investigation indicates the problem was caused by a temporary breakdown in the company's production and packaging processes.

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/salento-organics-issues-allergy-alert-undeclared-milk-dark-chocolate-fruit-and-peanut-bites
Salento Organics Issues Allergy Alert on Undeclared Milk in Dark Chocolate Fruit and Peanut Bites
Summary
Company Announcement Date:  March 29, 2023
FDA Publish Date:  March 29, 2023
Product Type:  Food & Beverages   Snack Food Item
Reason for Announcement:  Undeclared Milk
Company Name:  Salento Organics
Brand Name:  Salento Organics
Product Description:  Various Dark Chocolate Fruit and Peanut Bites

Seafood Related Toxins and Scombrotoxin - US Cases

FDA released its updated table on Seafood-Related Toxin and Scombrotoxin Fish Poisoning Illnesses. The table shows "natural toxin illness and outbreak incidents that are no longer active. These incidents have been reported to and managed by the FDA."

What a great opportunity to review these toxins and introduce a new one (at least for me) Haff disease.

Ciguatera Fish Poisoning (CFP)

• Commonly related to the consumption of subtropical and tropical reef fish which can accumulate naturally occurring ciguatoxins through their diet  Fish can include - barracuda; grouper; snapper; jacks and trevally; wrasse; mackerel; tang; moray eels; and parrotfish
• The onset of symptoms typically occurs within 6 hours after consuming toxic fish and may persist from several days to weeks. In severe cases, some neurological symptoms may persist for months and can recur for years.
• The neurological symptoms are what sets this apart as foodborne illness - Numbness and tingling of the lips and extremities; Itching of the hands and feet; Joint pain; Muscle pain; Muscle weakness; 
• Reversal and sensitivity to temperature; Dizziness; and Vertigo;

Scombrotoxin Fish Poisoning (SFP)

• Caused by histamine formation as a result of time and temperature abuse such as improper storage/refrigeration of certain types of fish can cause consumer illness. 
• Primarily associated with the consumption of tuna, mahi-mahi, marlin, and bluefish, among other species when those species have been temperature abused somewhere in the supply chain (from the point of catch to the point of cooking.
• Symptoms usually occur within a few minutes to a few hours of consumption and last from 12 hours to a few days. Symptoms of SFP include: Tingling or burning in or around the mouth or throat; Rash or hives on the upper body; Drop in blood pressure; Headache; Dizziness; Itching of the skin; Nausea; Vomiting; Diarrhea; Asthmatic-like constriction of the air passage; Heart palpitations; and Respiratory distress  (basically a allergic-type response)

Puffer Fish Poisoning (PFP)

• Caused by naturally occurring tetrodotoxin is associated with the consumption of puffer fish from waters of the Indo-Pacific Ocean Regions, Gulf of Mexico, Gulf of California, and specific areas on the Atlantic coast of Florida
• Symptoms usually develop within 3 hours after consumption of contaminated fish and may last from 24 – 48 hours. Death commonly occurs due to muscle paralysis resulting in respiratory failure when ventilatory support is not accessible.

Seafood-associated Rhabdomyolysis or Haff disease  (HAFF)

• Linked to the consumption of buffalo fish in the United States although other fish species such as burbot, crayfish, eel, pike and salmon have been associated with the disease worldwide.  Buffalo fish are these carp like fish that can be easily confused with carp.
• Results in the breakdown of skeletal muscle (rhabdomyolysis), with a risk of acute kidney failure that develops within 24 hours after consuming certain fish. Initial symptoms include muscle tenderness and weakness, sometimes with tea-colored urine.
• It is suspected that it is  caused by a bioaccumulation of a new, heat-stable freshwater and/or brackish/saltwater algal toxin, similar to palytoxin but primarily myotoxic and not neurotoxic.

Table continues - How to Report Seafood-Related Toxin and Scombrotoxin Fish Poisoning Illnesses | FDA

FDA Warning Letter - FL Catering Company with History of Listeria

FDA issued a Warning Letter to Wise Spice Catering Company, of Hialeah, Florida, a facility producing ready-to-eat (RTE)  products including sandwiches and meals.

Listeria in facility and in product

• FDA "found that nineteen (19) swabs were confirmed positive for L. monocytogenes. Of the positive findings, one (1) swab was collected from the food-contact surface of a prep table in the (b)(4) Room used in the assembling of your RTE closed faced sandwiches, and one (1) swab was collected from the food-contact surface of a black milk crate holding raw tomatoes and onion used in RTE closed faced sandwiches and salads. This was not the first time L. monocytogenes was found in environmental samples collected in your facilities building. In 2020, FDA detected L. monocytogenes in six (6) environmental swabs; in 2018, FDA detected L. monocytogenes in nine (9) environmental swabs; and in 2017 FDA detected L. monocytogenes in eighteen (18) environmental swabs."
• "Based on the results of the WGS analysis, these isolates represent eighteen (18) different strains of L. monocytogenes. The WGS analysis identified multiple strains of L. monocytogenes isolated over multiple years which is indicative of the presence of resident pathogens or harborage sites in your facility."
• Many of these strains were found in different product samples tested since 2015.

GMP issues

• Ineffective measures to exclude pests from  packing and holding areas with sightings of cockroaches and flies.
• Drip / condensate falling from from fixtures, ducts and pipes 
• Improper cleaning including the use of unclean utensils
• Inadequate temperatures control

As of this issuance, the company looks to be be permanently closed.

https://www.fda.gov/inspections-compliance-enforcement-and-criminal-investigations/warning-letters/wise-spice-catering-company-640715-03082023
FDA Warning Letter - Wise Spice Catering Company

Mammoth Meatballs...Potential for the Real Deal Paleo Diet

An Australian company created mammoth meatballs from meat grown from cells with "DNA sequence from mammoth myoglobin, a key muscle protein in giving meat its flavour, and filled in the few gaps using elephant DNA."  "This sequence was placed in myoblast stem cells from a sheep, which replicated to grow to the 20bn cells subsequently used by the company to grow the mammoth meat."

"No one has yet tasted the mammoth meatball. “We haven’t seen this protein for thousands of years,” said Wolvetang. “So we have no idea how our immune system would react when we eat it. But if we did it again, we could certainly do it in a way that would make it more palatable to regulatory bodies.”"


The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/mar/28/meatball-mammoth-created-cultivated-meat-firm
Meatball from long-extinct mammoth created by food firm

Exclusive: Australian company resurrects flesh of lost species to demonstrate potential of meat grown from cells

A mammoth meatball has been created by a cultivated meat company, resurrecting the flesh of the long-extinct animals.