Do Less Recalls During COVID-19 Mean Our Food Is Less Safe? No.

In an article from "The Hill", they ask if food is safe during the COVID-19 pandemic because they were not seeing many recalls.  They state, "Recalls, though, were flowing in regularly before February, with five in January, four in December, four in November and three in October."

I am not sure I would call this flowing when you look at the amount of product that is made by thousands of establishments across the country.  And when we look at the type of recalls over the past 6 months, only a few were due to foodborne pathogens.  Most recalls were due to foreign material (often one to three complaints, normally plastic) or allergen-related.

So to assert that our product is less safe because we are not seeing recalls because inspectors are distracted due to COVID-19, that is plain phooey.  As we have tracked recalls over the past decade, we have seen a steady decrease in the serious pathogen-related recalls, and that is because the industry is focused on food safety improvement.  

I would like to have seen one of these quoted academics actually say, 'based on the types recalls we've not seen over the past years, the meat industry has been doing a great job.'  Because it has.

Are people less likely to complain about that piece of plastic in their burrito because they are worried that someone with COVID-19 breathed on the packaging?  Probably.  I will give them that.

https://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/business-a-lobbying/493423-usda-under-pressure-as-food-safety-concerns-grow
USDA under pressure as food safety concerns grow
By Alex Gangitano - 04/19/20 06:00 AM EDT

This Week in Mislabeled Product for Week Ending April 25, 2020

Undeclared Suflites in Compot - ROYAL INTERNATIONAL TRADING Inc of Brooklyn, NY is recalling its 500g (17.63oz) packages of "TAINY BOCTOKA DRY FRUITS MIX COMPOT APPLE" because they contain undeclared sulfites. The recall was initiated after routine sampling be New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets Food Inspectors and subsequent analysis by Food Laboratory personnel revealed the presence of sulfites in the500g (17.63oz) packages of "TAINY BOCTOKA DRY FRUITS MIX COMPOT APPLE" which were not declared on the label.

Undeclared Sulfites in Juice - Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc. is recalling a single production lot of 5.5oz cans of Pink Lite Cranberry Juice Drink (listed below) because it may contain undeclared sulfites, which were erroneously added by a contract manufacturer. Sulfites are a common preservative added to many food products; however, consumers who have sensitivity to sulfites run the risk of allergic reactions if consumed.

Flounder Missing Allergens - Buckhead Meat and Seafood of Houston, Inc., a Sysco Company, is voluntarily recalling a small quantity of frozen Flounder Stuffed with Seafood because its labeling inadvertently did not identify the following allergens in the product: wheat, soy, milk, fish, and eggs.

European Study on Listeria Outbreak Linked to Frozen Vegetables

A piece by the European Food Safety Authority on Listeria issues with blanched and frozen vegetables shows the importance of Listeria control in the post-processing environment. Also shows that the 100/gm level for Listeria may have issues. This comes after a long, ongoing "multi‐country outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes ST6 that caused 53 cases and 10 deaths over the period 2015–2018, was linked in 2018 to frozen vegetables."
We have known both of these items for some time.  With blanched vegetables, we are never sure the consumer is going to properly handle and cook the vegetables.  Therefore, low levels of Listeria can be problematic even if the product will not support growth during frozen storage.

In the US, as part of the Preventive Controls for Human Foods regulation, this is controlled as part of  the Sanitation Preventive Controls if that product is considered ready-to-eat.  And we have a zero-tolerance policy.

European Food Safety Authority
EFSA Journal
https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/j.efsa.2020.6092
The public health risk posed by Listeria monocytogenes in frozen fruit and vegetables including herbs, blanched during processing

Chipotle Agrees to $25 Million Fine for Foodborne Illness Outbreaks

 As part of the series of foodborne illness outbreaks linked to Chipotle, the company has agreed to pay 25 million fine according to the US Department of Justice.  As part of the agreement, the company "agreed to a three-year deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) that will allow it to avoid conviction if it complies with an improved food safety program."

"Chipotle was implicated in at least five foodborne illness outbreaks between 2015 and 2018 connected to restaurants in the Los Angeles area, Boston, Virginia and Ohio. These incidents primarily stemmed from store-level employees’ failure to follow company food safety protocols at company-owned restaurants, including a Chipotle policy requiring the exclusion of employees who were sick or recently had been sick."

Although the company had a substantial loss in stock value along with drop in sales, they have been doing well as of recent.  "Chipotle reported financial results for its fiscal first quarter, clocking a 7.8% increase in revenue, to $1.4 billion, compared with the same period a year ago. Comparable restaurant sales increased 3.3%, even with a 1.4% decrease in the number of transactions, and inspite of a 16.0% decline in comparable restaurant sales in the month of March."

Meatingplace.com
Industry News - AM
https://www.meatingplace.com/Industry/News/Details/91665
Chipotle to pay $25M to settle food safety case
By Lisa M. Keefe on 4/22/2020

CDC MMWR - An Increase in Chemical Contamination Issues Associated with Cleaning Chemicals During COVID-19 Pandemic

There has been a marked increase in the number of chemical contamination issues since March 2020 due to misuse of chemical cleaners and disinfectants due in large part to consumers reacting to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Young children represented a large percentage of the cases.  Bleaches accounted for the largest percentage increase among cleaners whereas nonalcohol disinfectants and hand sanitizers accounted for the largest percentages of the increase among disinfectants.  Inhalation represented the largest percentage increase for exposure routes.

"The daily number of calls to poison centers increased sharply at the beginning of March 2020 for exposures to both cleaners and disinfectants (Figure). The increase in total calls was seen across all age groups; however, exposures among children aged ≤5 years consistently represented a large percentage of total calls in the 3-month study period for each year (range = 39.9%– 47.3%) (Table). Further analysis of the increase in calls from 2019 to 2020 (3,137 for cleaners, 4,591 for disinfectants), showed that among all cleaner categories, bleaches accounted for the largest percentage of the increase (1,949; 62.1%), whereas nonalcohol disinfectants (1,684; 36.7%) and hand sanitizers (1,684; 36.7%) accounted for the largest percentages of the increase among disinfectant categories. Inhalation represented the largest percentage increase from 2019 to 2020 among all exposure routes, with an increase of 35.3% (from 4,713 to 6,379) for all cleaners and an increase of 108.8% (from 569 to 1,188) for all disinfectants.

The two cases used to showcase the issue:

1. "An adult woman heard on the news to clean all recently purchased groceries before consuming them. She filled a sink with a mixture of 10% bleach solution, vinegar, and hot water, and soaked her produce. While cleaning her other groceries, she noted a noxious smell described as “chlorine” in her kitchen. She developed difficulty breathing, coughing, and wheezing, and called 911." 
2. "A preschool-aged child was found unresponsive at home and transported to the ED via ambulance. A 64-ounce bottle of ethanol-based hand sanitizer was found open on the kitchen table. According to her family, she became dizzy after ingesting an unknown amount, fell and hit her head. She vomited while being transported to the ED, where she was poorly responsive. Her blood alcohol level was elevated at 273 mg/dL (most state laws define a limit of 80 mg/dL for driving under the influence); neuroimaging did not indicate traumatic injuries."

Keys:

• Do not mix chemicals
• Follow label instructions
• Keep chemcials out of the reach of children (or adults who don't read instructions).

CDC MMWR

Cleaning and Disinfectant Chemical Exposures and Temporal Associations with COVID-19 — National Poison Data System, United States, January 1, 2020– March 31, 2020

FDA Issues Warning Letters to Three Importers Due to FSVP Issues

FDA issued Warning Letters for non-compliance for the Foreign Supplier Verification Program (FSVP) to three companies:

• Nassif Wholesale LLC., of Palm Springs, FL did not have a FSVP for Sesame seeds, tahini and Semolina imported from (b)(4).
• Fatima Brothers Inc. located at 5601 56th Dr. Maspeth, NY did not have a FSVP in place for Boiled Rice and Cake rusk.
• Prime Line Distributors Inc., located at 2800 SW 42nd St. Ft. Lauderdale FL did not have a FSVP for  Hazelnut Paste, Gran Padano Cheese and Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese

https://www.fda.gov/inspections-compliance-enforcement-and-criminal-investigations/warning-letters/nassif-wholesale-llc-604640-03192020
WARNING LETTER
Nassif Wholesale LLC
MARCS-CMS 604640 — March 19, 2020

FDA Warning Letter - Processor Out of Compliance with Acidified Foods Regulation.

FDA issued a Warning Letter to a New Jersey processor of acidified food and dry food mix products.  The main issue was that they did not file a process with FDA as part of the Acidified Foods regulation.  Specifically, the company must file a process "for heat processing and control of pH, salt, sugar, and preservative level, and source and date of the established process, for each acidified food in each container size, as required by 21 CFR 108.25(c)(2). However, [FDA's] inspection revealed that [the company] failed to file a scheduled process with FDA for [the] firm’s shelf-stable acidified products, including, but not limited to, Garlic in Oil; Hot Sauce; Gravy Booster & Color Sauce; Deluxe Barbecue Sauce; Sweet & Smoky BBQ Sauce; and Ranch, Italian, French, Thousand Island, Russian, Creamy Italian, and Caesar salad dressings."

Along with this, the company did not have validated systems, trained employees in Better Process Control, record keeping, and testing.  They also did not have a Preventive Control plan.

FDA Warning Letter
https://www.fda.gov/inspections-compliance-enforcement-and-criminal-investigations/warning-letters/allied-food-products-inc-606511-04142020
Allied Food Products Inc
MARCS-CMS 606511 — April 14, 2020

This Week in Mislabeled Product for Week Ending April 18, 2020

The Whole Foods Market store located at 7111 E Mayo Blvd. Phoenix, AZ 85054 is voluntarily recalling Queso Sauce because it may contain cashews (a tree nut).  The issue was discovered after a customer reported a reaction. One reaction has been reported to date.

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/allergy-alert-issued-undeclared-cashews-queso-sauce-sold-single-whole-foods-market-store-phoenix
Allergy Alert Issued for Undeclared Cashews in Queso Sauce Sold at a Single Whole Foods Market Store in Phoenix, Arizona
Summary
Company Announcement Date:  April 16, 2020
FDA Publish Date:  April 16, 2020
Product Type:  Food & Beverages
Reason for Announcement:  Undeclared cashews
Company Name:  Whole Foods Market
Brand Name:  Whole Foods Market
Product Description:  Queso Sauce

Virginia Company Recalls Butter After Positive Listeria Test

Homestead Creamery Inc of Wirtz, VA, is recalling our unsalted butter because of the potential contamination of Listeria monocytogenes,  There have been no reported illnesses.  The potential for contamination was noted after routine testing by Homestead Creamery and revealed the presence of Listeria monocytogenes in our unsalted butter.

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/homestead-creamery-recall-unsalted-butter-because-possible-health-risk
Homestead Creamery Recall “Unsalted” Butter Because of Possible Health Risk
Summary
Company Announcement Date: April 01, 2020
FDA Publish Date:  April 17, 2020
Product Type:  Food & Beverages   Butter/Butter Product
Reason for Announcement:  Foodborne Illness Potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes
Company Name:  Homestead Creamery Inc.
Brand Name:  Homestead Creamery
Product Description:  Unsalted Butter