NY Firm Recalls Imported Chocolate Chip Cookies for Undeclared Almonds

D. COLUCCIO & SONS, of  Brooklyn, NY, is recalling its 300 gram packages of “Colussi Cantuccini Chocolate Drops” chocolate chip cookies because they may contain undeclared almonds.  The recall was initiated after it was discovered that the almond containing product was distributed in packaging that did not reveal the presence of almonds through a recall foreign recall notice from product manufacturer in Italy. Subsequent investigation indicated the problem was caused by temporary breakdown in the company’s production and packaging processes.

According to the company website, "D. Coluccio and Sons, Inc. is a family owned and operated Italian specialty food importer and retailer located in the heart of Bensonhurst, Brooklyn"  In this case, this importer would be under the FSVP which requires the importer to verify the supplier is operating under PCHF and with that, controlling hazards with preventive controls.  In this case, the foreign supplier would need to have allergen preventive controls because they are handling allergens other than what is going into this produce.  This is where the utilization of Appendix 1 for process / facility related hazards (as summarized in FSCPA's form 231) is a must.

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/d-coluccio-sons-issues-allergy-alert-undeclared-almonds-colussi-cantuccini-chocolate-drops-cookies
D. Coluccio & Sons, Issues Allergy Alert on Undeclared Almonds in “Colussi Cantuccini Chocolate Drops” Cookies
Summary
Company Announcement Date:  January 21, 2025
FDA Publish Date:  January 21, 2025
Product Type:  Food & Beverages
Reason for Announcement:  Undeclared almond
Company Name:  D. Coluccio & Sons
Brand Name:  Colussi
Product Description:  “Colussi Cantuccini Chocolate Drops” chocolate chip cookies

California Company Recalls Corn Puff Snack for Undeclared Milk

Wismettac Asian Foods, Inc., Santa Fe Springs, CA is recalling 2.46 oz packages of Shirakiku brand Curvee Puffs Corn Puff Snack Curry Flavor. The product contains the undeclared milk.  The recall was initiated after discovering that the product contained an undeclared allergen (milk). The last distribution of the product in the marketplace was on January 10, 2025.

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/wismettac-asian-foods-issues-allergy-alert-undeclared-milk-curvee-puffs-corn-puff-snack-curry-flavor
Wismettac Asian Foods Issues Allergy Alert on Undeclared Milk in Curvee Puffs Corn Puff Snack Curry Flavor
Summary
Company Announcement Date: January 17, 2025
FDA Publish Date: January 20, 2025
Product Type: Food & Beverages
Reason for Announcement: Undeclared milk.
Company Name: Wismettac Asian Foods, Inc.
Brand Name: Shirakiku
Product Description: Snack foods-Corn Puffs

USDA FSIS Issues Report on Boar's Head Listeria Outbreak

USDA-FSIS issued a report on the Boar's Head Listeria Outbreak that was linked to liverwurst product. The report provides information on facility findings as well as issues that need to be corrected within the FSIS inspection process.

For the facility findings, there is no specific issue is presented on how the specific product became contaminated, but rather generalized issues and trends noted by inspectors. The report states:

A notable contributing factor was the facility’s inadequate sanitation practices. Observations by VDACS inspection personnel documented in noncompliance records (NR) demonstrated multiple instances of noncompliance with Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures and Sanitation Performance Standards. While sanitary conditions were required to be restored for each documented noncompliance, repeated instances of insanitary conditions can present opportunities for growth or sustained presence of Lm. Documented instances of noncompliance included:

• Product Residue: Inspectors identified the presence of meat and fat residue from the previous day’s production on equipment, including packaging equipment and in the RTE processing area during preoperational sanitation checks. Residue can provide a substrate for Lm to survive and grow in the food processing environment and form biofilms, which can become more resistant to cleaning regimens. Biofilms are thin layers of bacteria that can form on equipment and other surfaces (similar to plaque on teeth). Once biofilms form, they must be removed by scrubbing or other mechanical action.
• Condensation: Inspectors identified multiple instances of condensation in the RTE environment (e.g., dripping condensate on exposed product and a fan blowing condensate directly on products).
• Structural and Facility Problems: Inspectors observed facility and structural-related issues (e.g., cracks, holes and broken flooring) that could hold moisture and contribute to wet conditions. Additional conditions documented included rust, beaded condensation and peeling caulk.

Additional considerations assessed by FSIS included the establishment’s construction activities, sampling history, sampling programs and raw and RTE separation practices.

The report briefly discusses inspectional notes at other Boar's Head facilities.

A good majority of the report goes into FSIS procedures and how they can improve procedures including those involving sampling, communication, and response, not only for FSIS personnel, but also state employees working as part of USDA-State agreements.

https://www.fsis.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media_file/documents/Boars-Head-Public-Report-012025.pdf
Review of the Boar’s Head Listeria monocytogenes Outbreak

January 2025

FDA Requring Manufacturers of Raw Pet Food To Reanalyze Food Safety Plans for HPAI

"The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has determined that it is necessary for manufacturers of cat and dog foods who are covered by the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act Preventive Controls for Animal Food (PCAF) rule and using uncooked or unpasteurized materials derived from poultry or cattle (e.g., uncooked meat, unpasteurized milk or unpasteurized eggs) to reanalyze their food safety plans to include Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza virus (specifically H5N1) as a known or reasonably foreseeable hazard. Furthermore, the FDA is issuing this update to ensure that cat and dog food manufacturers are aware of information about the new H5N1 hazard associated with their pet food products, which is an additional reason that manufacturers must conduct a reanalysis of their food safety plans."

"The reanalysis is necessary to respond to the recent domestic cat illnesses and deaths described above and to scientific data indicating that cats and dogs have become ill from consuming H5N1 virus. Manufacturers that implement a preventive control for the H5N1 hazard as a result of their reanalysis will be taking an important step toward protecting cat and dog health and helping to prevent spread of H5N1. Addressing H5N1 will require a concerted effort across sectors, including by government, businesses, and consumers."


https://www.fda.gov/animal-veterinary/cvm-updates/cat-and-dog-food-manufacturers-required-consider-h5n1-food-safety-plans
Cat and Dog Food Manufacturers Required to Consider H5N1 in Food Safety Plans
January 17, 2025

Michigan Establishment Recalls Sausage Product for Undeclared Soy

UP Products, LLC, doing business as Meyer Wholesale, a Ewen, Mich. establishment, is recalling approximately 400 pounds of sausage products due to misbranding and an undeclared allergen, the  products contain soy, a known allergen, which is not declared on the product labels.

https://www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls-alerts/products-llc-dba-meyer-wholesale-recalls-ready-eat-and-raw-sausage-products-due
UP Products, LLC, DBA Meyer Wholesale Recalls Ready-To-Eat and Raw Sausage Products Due to Misbranding and Undeclared Allergen

FDA Revokes the Authorization for the Use of FD&C Red No. 3

 The FDA is amending its color additive regulations to no longer allow for the use of FD&C Red No. 3 in food and ingested drugs in response to a 2022 color additive petition.  FD&C Red No. 3 is a synthetic food dye that gives foods and drinks a bright, cherry-red color. FD&C Red No. 3 has been primarily used in certain food products, such as candy, cakes and cupcakes, cookies, frozen desserts, and frostings and icings, as well as certain ingested drugs.  Manufacturers who use FD&C Red No. 3 in food and ingested drugs will have until January 15, 2027 or January 18, 2028, respectively, to reformulate their products. 

"The dye, linked in studies to hyperactivity in children and the potential to cause cancer, has already been banned in cosmetics but remains legal in food products." https://www.post-gazette.com/news/health/2025/01/05/red-dye-3-fda-food-coloring/stories/202412260101

An article in Food Safety magazine (LINK) provided this:

"FDA made its decision in response to a 2022 color additive petition filed by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, Consumer Reports, and 22 others, which cited, among other data and information, two studies that showed cancer in laboratory male rats exposed to high levels of red dye 3 due to a rat-specific hormonal mechanism. Although FDA granted this petition, in its decision, FDA asserted that these studies are not necessarily relevant to human health; according to the agency, harmful exposure levels for male rats are much lower than for humans, and studies in humans and in other animals did not show carcinogenic effects. In a December 2024 Senate hearing, when asked why the agency still allows potentially harmful red dye 3 in food but not cosmetics, FDA Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods Jim Jones reiterated this position, explaining that the current scientific consensus is that the additive’s mode of carcinogenicity in animals is not applicable to humans."

"Regardless, beliefs that red dye 3 and other artificial food colorants are harmful to human health are widely held. In October 2024, Consumer Reports delivered another petition—with 80,000 signatures—urging the agency to ban red dye 3 in foods, citing, in addition to its potential carcinogenicity, that the dye is associated with hyperactivity and other neurobehavioral effects in children. A November letter from 23 Congress members also urging FDA to ban red dye 3 echoed the same concerns, and noted that the colorant is not allowed for food use by the EU, Australia, or New Zealand."

https://www.fda.gov/food/hfp-constituent-updates/fda-revoke-authorization-use-red-no-3-food-and-ingested-drugs
FDA to Revoke Authorization for the Use of Red No. 3 in Food and Ingested Drugs
Constituent Update
January 15, 2025

California Establishment Recalls Taquito Products After Complaint for Metal Foreign Material

Bestway Sandwiches Inc., a Valencia, Calif. establishment, is recalling approximately 24,870 pounds of frozen chicken and cheese taquito products that may be contaminated with foreign material, specifically metal.  The problem was discovered after the firm notified FSIS that it received a consumer complaint reporting that a piece of metal was found in the frozen chicken and cheese taquito product. Another consumer reported to FSIS to have a dental injury from the product.

https://www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls-alerts/bestway-sandwiches-inc--recalls-frozen-chicken-and-cheese-taquito-products-due
Bestway Sandwiches Inc. Recalls Frozen Chicken And Cheese Taquito Products Due To Possible Foreign Matter Contamination

USDA Issues Public Health Alert for Mislabeled Chicken Empanadas Resulting in Undeclared Milk

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is issuing a public health alert for frozen product labeled as Chicken Curry Empanadas due to misbranding and an undeclared allergen. The product labeled as Chicken Curry Empanadas may actually contain Apple Cinnamon Empanadas, which contain milk, a known allergen, that is not declared on the product label.  A recall was not requested because the affected product is no longer available for purchase.

https://www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls-alerts/fsis-issues-public-health-alert-chicken-empanada-products-due-misbranding-and
FSIS Issues Public Health Alert For Chicken Empanada Products Due To Misbranding And Undeclared Allergen

CA Firm Recalls BBQ Sauces for Undeclared Allergens

Monkey Spit, LLC, Nipomo, CA, is recalling its 12-ounce glass bottle of: 

• Monkey Mop BBQ Sauce - because it may contain undeclared milk. 
• Swamp Mob BBQ Sauce - because it may contain undeclared soy. 
• Atomic Mop BBQ Sauce - because it may contain undeclared milk and wheat. 

The recall was initiated after an FDA inspection. It was discovered that there were undeclared allergens not reveal on the product labels. Subsequent investigation indicates the problem was caused by a temporary breakdown in the company's packaging processes.

This appears to be an issue related to label design where the person developing the label did not properly understand allergen labeling.

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/monkey-spit-llc-issues-allergy-alert-undeclared-milkwheatsoy-monkey-spit-bbq-sauces
Monkey Spit, LLC Issues Allergy Alert on Undeclared Milk/Wheat/Soy in Monkey Spit BBQ Sauces
Summary
Company Announcement Date:  January 17, 2025
FDA Publish Date: January 17, 2025
Product Type:  Food & Beverages  Gravy/Sauces
Reason for Announcement:  Undeclared Milk, Soy, and Wheat
Company Name:  Monkey Spit, LLC.
Brand Name:  Monkey Spit
Product Description:  Barbecue sauces