Bits and Pieces: Foreign Material Recalls

There's been a rash of food recalls recently due to the presence of metal or plastic bits in the products. The problems have turned up in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Australia
May 1st: Woolworth's recalled 6-packs of "Home Brand Mini Spring Rolls" due to metal shavings or wire in the products. The 300-gram packages were identified with best before dates of 11/02/09 to 14/04/09 and were distributed in several states.

May 6th: Australian International Foods Pty Ltd recalled several of its meat, poultry and vegetable rolls due to the presence of metal wire. The recall included all products labeled with a best before date of 11 Feb 09 to 14 April 09.

United Kingdom
May 12th: The Food Standards Agency has alerted British consumers to a recall of "Nestlé Nutrition Build-up Original" milk-based powder, due to the possible presence of thin pieces of plastic in the product. The 400g packages are identified with batch code 72760949 and a best before date of 10/2009. This product is a nutrient-rich dietary supplement and is given to patients and other individuals at risk of malnutrition.

United States
May 12th: Fairbank Reconstruction Corp., of Asheville, NY, is recalling more than 23,000 pounds of ground beef that may be contaminated with pieces of plastic. The recalled product, which was produced on May 5th, was distributed in Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts and New York. The company initiated the recall after receiving complaints that consumers had found plastic in the meat. There have been no injuries or illnesses reported.

The ground meat was packaged in 1-pound to 5.3-pound trays of ground beef or patties and was sold under several store brand names, including Shaws, BJ's, Price Chopper and Fairbank Farms. The trays are labeled with Est. 492 inside the USDA seal of inspection, and carry date codes of 05/13/08, 05/15/08 or the Julian date code 124.