The Peter Pan Peanut Butter Salmonella Outbreak is a great case study in how Salmonella can contaminate a low moisture, ready-to-eat food. In this case, CDC reported indicated over 400 cases linked to peanut butter that had become contaminated due to "inadvertent moisture got into the production process", or a leaky roof.
Although this case is seven years old, it is not over yet for the parent company, ConAgra. According to a story in the Atlantic Business Chronicle, the plant underwent an investigation in 2011by the Justice Department for criminal wrongdoing. The company and the US Attorney's office are still in negotiations regarding the investigation, where it is possible that this "will likely involve a misdemeanor criminal disposition under the Food, Drug & Cosmetics Act."
The Chronicle reports that the company has spent $25 million in connection to the investigation. This is in addition to the 10's of millions spent on upgrading the plant and the 50 to 60 million for the recall itself. And of course there is the loss in sales over that time period.
Atlantic Business Chronicle
http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2014/04/01/2007-peanut-butter-recall-hanging-over-conagra.html
2007 peanut butter recall hanging over ConAgra
David Allison
Editor- Atlanta Business Chronicle
Apr 1, 2014
Seven years after a recall of peanut butter made at a Georgia plant, federal investigations are still hanging over the head of ConAgra Foods Inc.
Friday, April 4, 2014
Thursday, April 3, 2014
British Study Shows Organic Unlikely to Reduce Risk for Cancer
The British Journal of Cancer published an scientific study that indicates women who eat organic foods do not reduce the risk to develop cancer when compared to women who eat a more conventional diet.
British Journal of Cancer
http://www.nature.com/bjc/journal/vaop/ncurrent/abs/bjc2014148a.html
Organic food consumption and the incidence of cancer in a large prospective study of women in the United Kingdom
K E Bradbury1, A Balkwill1, E A Spencer2, A W Roddam3, G K Reeves1, J Green1, T J Key1, V Beral1 and K Pirie1 The Million Women Study Collaborators4
1Cancer Epidemiology Unit, Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 7LF, UK
2Department of Primary Care and Health Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6GG, UK
3Worldwide Epidemiology, GSK, Uxbridge UB11 1BT, UK
Correspondence: Dr KE Bradbury, E-mail: kathryn.bradbury@ceu.ox.ac.uk
4Members of the Million Women Study Collaborators are listed before References.
Received 3 December 2013; Revised 24 February 2014; Accepted 26 February 2014
Advance online publication 27 March 2014Top of page
Abstract
Background:
Organically produced foods are less likely than conventionally produced foods to contain pesticide residues.
Methods:
We examined the hypothesis that eating organic food may reduce the risk of soft tissue sarcoma, breast cancer, non-Hodgkin lymphoma and other common cancers in a large prospective study of 623 080 middle-aged UK women. Women reported their consumption of organic food and were followed for cancer incidence over the next 9.3 years. Cox regression models were used to estimate adjusted relative risks for cancer incidence by the reported frequency of consumption of organic foods.
Results:
At baseline, 30%, 63% and 7% of women reported never, sometimes, or usually/always eating organic food, respectively. Consumption of organic food was not associated with a reduction in the incidence of all cancer (n=53 769 cases in total) (RR for usually/always vs never=1.03, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.99–1.07), soft tissue sarcoma (RR=1.37, 95% CI: 0.82–2.27), or breast cancer (RR=1.09, 95% CI: 1.02–1.15), but was associated for non-Hodgkin lymphoma (RR=0.79, 95% CI: 0.65–0.96).
Conclusions:
In this large prospective study there was little or no decrease in the incidence of cancer associated with consumption of organic food, except possibly for non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Keywords:
organic food; cancer; cohort; women
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Changing an Establishment's Name Does Not Rid a Facility of Listeria
A Brooklyn fish processing plant was ordered to shut down due to Listeria....Listeria that never seemed to go away, even after the established changed ownership. However, according to this report, the new and old ownership failed to take sufficient corrective actions.
We have seen in numerous cases, that once Listeria gains a foothold in a facility, the best you can do is control it...and that takes a lot of work. According to a prominent lawyer website report, FDA had found Listeria in the facility 48 times over a 6 year period...presumably the same strain.
Even used equipment can harbor Listeria for years. To rid used equipment of Listeria, intense detail cleaning is needed. For a plant, detailed cleaning to the point of pathogen free can be a bit more difficult (drains, cracks in floors, etc).
Listeria is not the only pathogen that can be a problematic environmental pathogen. In 2008, Mars Pet Food closed a facility after a restart failed after two recalls due to Salmonella. It will be interesting to see if after the Sunland Food plant purchase, whether that facility will have ongoing issues.
Daily News
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/judge-shuts-brooklyn-fish-processing-plant-article-1.1740508
Judge shuts down Brooklyn fish processing plant
A federal judge has ordered the shutdown of Brooklyn fish processing plant New York City Fish, which has been plagued for years by life-threatening Listeria bacteria.
BY John Marzulli
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Monday, March 31, 2014, 1:10 PM
A federal judge has ordered the shutdown of a Brooklyn fish processing plant that has been plagued for years by life-threatening Listeria bacteria.
Judge Roslynn Mauskopf stuck a harpoon in New York City fish, granting the government's request for a permanent injunction against the plant located on Chester St. in Brownsville, which distributes smoked salmon, mackerel and herring.
We have seen in numerous cases, that once Listeria gains a foothold in a facility, the best you can do is control it...and that takes a lot of work. According to a prominent lawyer website report, FDA had found Listeria in the facility 48 times over a 6 year period...presumably the same strain.
Even used equipment can harbor Listeria for years. To rid used equipment of Listeria, intense detail cleaning is needed. For a plant, detailed cleaning to the point of pathogen free can be a bit more difficult (drains, cracks in floors, etc).
Listeria is not the only pathogen that can be a problematic environmental pathogen. In 2008, Mars Pet Food closed a facility after a restart failed after two recalls due to Salmonella. It will be interesting to see if after the Sunland Food plant purchase, whether that facility will have ongoing issues.
Daily News
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/judge-shuts-brooklyn-fish-processing-plant-article-1.1740508
Judge shuts down Brooklyn fish processing plant
A federal judge has ordered the shutdown of Brooklyn fish processing plant New York City Fish, which has been plagued for years by life-threatening Listeria bacteria.
BY John Marzulli
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Monday, March 31, 2014, 1:10 PM
A federal judge has ordered the shutdown of a Brooklyn fish processing plant that has been plagued for years by life-threatening Listeria bacteria.
Judge Roslynn Mauskopf stuck a harpoon in New York City fish, granting the government's request for a permanent injunction against the plant located on Chester St. in Brownsville, which distributes smoked salmon, mackerel and herring.
Monday, March 31, 2014
Country of Origin Labeling Requirement for Meat Moves Forward
The US Court of Appeals is allowing the country of origin labeling requirement (COOL) to move forward despite the challenge by meat producers.
The law will require processors and retailers to list where the animals used in the product were born, raised and slaughtered.
While this will provide information to consumers, there is no doubt it will add costs to the system. Just are important is that many countries such as Canada and Mexico will look at this as a trade barrier and may inflict retaliatory tactics to US trade.
Are the costs worth it? Do consumers really care?
Reuters
http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/03/28/usa-courts-regulations-food-idINL1N0MP1C920140328
U.S. meat groups thwarted in bid to block country-of-origin labels
(Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Friday rejected a challenge by meat producers to a federal regulation that specifies labeling requirements for certain meat products, a move applauded by rancher and consumer groups.
The law will require processors and retailers to list where the animals used in the product were born, raised and slaughtered.
While this will provide information to consumers, there is no doubt it will add costs to the system. Just are important is that many countries such as Canada and Mexico will look at this as a trade barrier and may inflict retaliatory tactics to US trade.
Are the costs worth it? Do consumers really care?
Reuters
http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/03/28/usa-courts-regulations-food-idINL1N0MP1C920140328
U.S. meat groups thwarted in bid to block country-of-origin labels
(Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Friday rejected a challenge by meat producers to a federal regulation that specifies labeling requirements for certain meat products, a move applauded by rancher and consumer groups.
Fresh Express Recalls Packages of Salad Due to Listeria
Fresh Express is recalling 10oz and 6 oz packages of Italian Salad due to the potential to be contaminated with Listeria. The product in question is already past its stated expiration date.
There was no information on how the issue was discovered.
FDA Recall Notice
http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm391048.htm
Fresh Express Issues Recall of Limited Quantity of Already Expired Italian Salad Due to Possible Health Risk, No Illnesses Cited
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - March 28, 2014 - Salinas, California – Fresh Express Incorporated has issued a recall of a limited number of cases of 10 oz. and 6oz. Italian Salad with the already expired Use-by Date of March 26 and a Product Code of H071A11A due to a possible health risk from Listeria monocytogenes. No illnesses have been reported in association with the recall and no other Fresh Express products are being recalled.
There was no information on how the issue was discovered.
FDA Recall Notice
http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm391048.htm
Fresh Express Issues Recall of Limited Quantity of Already Expired Italian Salad Due to Possible Health Risk, No Illnesses Cited
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - March 28, 2014 - Salinas, California – Fresh Express Incorporated has issued a recall of a limited number of cases of 10 oz. and 6oz. Italian Salad with the already expired Use-by Date of March 26 and a Product Code of H071A11A due to a possible health risk from Listeria monocytogenes. No illnesses have been reported in association with the recall and no other Fresh Express products are being recalled.
Reaching Consumers with Product Safety Information - A Challenge for FSMA Regulation
On March 26th, FDA issued advanced notice of their proposed Implementation of the Food and Drug Administration Food Safety Modernization Act Amendments to the Reportable Food Registry Provisions of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act(link). In summary, FDA is looking for a way to communicate food safety product notices (recalls) to consumers. The objectives are for companies to provide standardized information to FDA, FDA to develop a one-page recall notice regarding that food safety issue with a reportable food, and then that notice will then be distributed by the retail outlets, or grocery chains, to the consumers.
Sounds easy enough, however, there are many challenges in establishing a protocol that will work. Chiefly among them is the fact that consumers are not an easy group to reach with recall this type of information. So how do retailers do this to a point where it is not costly? And from a practical standpoint, will this mandated system have an impact compared to what currently happens today?
This has implications for the manufacturers, but more so for the grocery chains.
Here is a ‘quick’ summary, much taken directly from the seven page document published in the Federal Register.
Friday, March 28, 2014
Two companies vie for Sunland Foods plant
The vultures move in to pick the bones of the Sunland Food company - two companies are bidding for the food plant after Sunland went out of business due to a Salmonella related recall.
Hopefully, the lucky buyer has done their due diligence to ensure that the Salmonella is out of the plant.
The New York Times
Canadian Firm Wins Bidding for Peanut Butter Plant
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2014/03/26/us/ap-us-peanut-butter-plant.html?ref=aponline&_r=3
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSMARCH 26, 2014, 6:57 P.M. E.D.T.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A federal judge Wednesday approved a Canadian company's last-minute $26 million cash offer for an eastern New Mexico peanut butter plant that went bankrupt after a salmonella outbreak and nationwide recall.
But the fight for Sunland Inc. appears far from over.
Lawyers for Hampton Farms of Severn, N.C., which won a first round of bidding for the company last week, were laying the groundwork for an appeal throughout the new auction and hearing where the sale to Golden Boy Foods Ltd. was approved.
At Wednesday morning's bidding, Hampton Farms increased its offer to $25.1 million, but only after making it clear it was doing so under protest and without waiving its right to appeal the ruling that forced the second round of bidding. The hearing to approve the sale was also peppered with motions and testimony aimed at appeal.
Hampton Farms bid $20 million for the plant March 20. But just minutes before a court hearing Friday to approve the sale, Golden Boy Foods called the bankruptcy trustee, Clarke Coll, with a $25 million cash offer.
Hopefully, the lucky buyer has done their due diligence to ensure that the Salmonella is out of the plant.
The New York Times
Canadian Firm Wins Bidding for Peanut Butter Plant
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2014/03/26/us/ap-us-peanut-butter-plant.html?ref=aponline&_r=3
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSMARCH 26, 2014, 6:57 P.M. E.D.T.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A federal judge Wednesday approved a Canadian company's last-minute $26 million cash offer for an eastern New Mexico peanut butter plant that went bankrupt after a salmonella outbreak and nationwide recall.
But the fight for Sunland Inc. appears far from over.
Lawyers for Hampton Farms of Severn, N.C., which won a first round of bidding for the company last week, were laying the groundwork for an appeal throughout the new auction and hearing where the sale to Golden Boy Foods Ltd. was approved.
At Wednesday morning's bidding, Hampton Farms increased its offer to $25.1 million, but only after making it clear it was doing so under protest and without waiving its right to appeal the ruling that forced the second round of bidding. The hearing to approve the sale was also peppered with motions and testimony aimed at appeal.
Hampton Farms bid $20 million for the plant March 20. But just minutes before a court hearing Friday to approve the sale, Golden Boy Foods called the bankruptcy trustee, Clarke Coll, with a $25 million cash offer.
CDC's An Atlas of Salmonella
Plot a bunch of illness-causing strains of Salmonella over 4 decades onto the maps of the US and you get the Atlas of Salmonella. There are those geeks out there (you know who you are) that will really stick their nose in this, and some that may even consider wall papering their bathroom with it, but for most others.....not really sure at this point.
CDC Website
http://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/
New! Public health scientists have tracked Salmonella infections in the United States since 1962. By identifying the structures on the bacteria’s surfaces, scientists can classify the many types of Salmonella into serotypes.
An Atlas of Salmonella in the United States, 1968-2011
[PDF - 248 pages] is the first-of-its-kind report that charts over 40 years of laboratory-confirmed surveillance data on 32 Salmonella serotypes. The report includes analyses by age, sex, season, and geography, down to the county level. This is the first time CDC has posted these data online in a downloadable format.
CDC Website
http://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/
New! Public health scientists have tracked Salmonella infections in the United States since 1962. By identifying the structures on the bacteria’s surfaces, scientists can classify the many types of Salmonella into serotypes.
An Atlas of Salmonella in the United States, 1968-2011
[PDF - 248 pages] is the first-of-its-kind report that charts over 40 years of laboratory-confirmed surveillance data on 32 Salmonella serotypes. The report includes analyses by age, sex, season, and geography, down to the county level. This is the first time CDC has posted these data online in a downloadable format.Additional egg products recalled in light of FSIS investigation
Updated 4/1/14
USDA issued a public health alert for egg products due to the fact they were unfit for human consumption. This comes as FSIS investigates a recall that occurred by the Washington state company, Nutriom for a recall they had last month.
It has come to light in this notice that "FSIS issued the original recall because the company allegedly recorded false laboratory results. The company allegedly produced negative laboratory results for Salmonella when the results were actually positive, or reported that sampling had occurred when, in fact, no microbial testing was performed".
This recall expands the previous recall by an additional 118,500 lbs from the original 226,710 lbs. However, the company refused to recall the additional amount and so now FSIS will remove it.
Based upon the letter written by Nutriom in response to the USDA, Nutriom disagreed with the USDA. Further, it indicates the record keeping irregularities were the responsibility of one individual who is no longer with the company.
So it appears from that statement that this is not a system wide issue, but rather a rouge employee issue.
Nutriom produces a dried egg product using a new technology. Salmonella is an issue in egg products and in dried products, so it is important for the process to be sufficient to rid the eggs of pathogens like Salmonella, but it is also important to prevent recontamination of the eggs in the post process environment. Salmonella can survive in dry products and dry process environments for long periods of time, and so can become a environmental contaminate if not controlled.
Nutriom LLC Response to USDA-FSIS Announcement
Nutriom products found to be safe by USDA-FSIS laboratory. http://www.prweb.com/releases/2014/03/prweb11713376.htm
Lacey, WA (PRWEB) March 29, 2014
Nutriom LLC is a small, family-owned and operated company, founded by an immigrant who came to this country more than 30 years ago looking for opportunity. Nutriom has developed a new technology for dehydrating eggs using its unique, patent-pending drying technology. Nutriom produces a dehydrated egg (“Egg Crystals™”) that when mixed with water and cooked, functions and tastes just like fresh eggs. It is 100% all-natural, pure egg with no added chemicals or preservatives.
USDA issued a public health alert for egg products due to the fact they were unfit for human consumption. This comes as FSIS investigates a recall that occurred by the Washington state company, Nutriom for a recall they had last month.
It has come to light in this notice that "FSIS issued the original recall because the company allegedly recorded false laboratory results. The company allegedly produced negative laboratory results for Salmonella when the results were actually positive, or reported that sampling had occurred when, in fact, no microbial testing was performed".
This recall expands the previous recall by an additional 118,500 lbs from the original 226,710 lbs. However, the company refused to recall the additional amount and so now FSIS will remove it.
Based upon the letter written by Nutriom in response to the USDA, Nutriom disagreed with the USDA. Further, it indicates the record keeping irregularities were the responsibility of one individual who is no longer with the company.
So it appears from that statement that this is not a system wide issue, but rather a rouge employee issue.
Nutriom produces a dried egg product using a new technology. Salmonella is an issue in egg products and in dried products, so it is important for the process to be sufficient to rid the eggs of pathogens like Salmonella, but it is also important to prevent recontamination of the eggs in the post process environment. Salmonella can survive in dry products and dry process environments for long periods of time, and so can become a environmental contaminate if not controlled.
Nutriom LLC Response to USDA-FSIS Announcement
Nutriom products found to be safe by USDA-FSIS laboratory. http://www.prweb.com/releases/2014/03/prweb11713376.htm
Lacey, WA (PRWEB) March 29, 2014
Nutriom LLC is a small, family-owned and operated company, founded by an immigrant who came to this country more than 30 years ago looking for opportunity. Nutriom has developed a new technology for dehydrating eggs using its unique, patent-pending drying technology. Nutriom produces a dehydrated egg (“Egg Crystals™”) that when mixed with water and cooked, functions and tastes just like fresh eggs. It is 100% all-natural, pure egg with no added chemicals or preservatives.
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