Cut Fruit Trays Containing Honduran Cantaloupe Recalled

Taylor Fresh Foods of Salinas, CA has announced a recall of several of its cut fruit products that may contain cantaloupe from Honduras. The melons originated with the grower/packer Agropecuaria Montelibano, whose cantaloupes have been implicated in an outbreak of Salmonella Litchfield.

The products being recalled are labeled with a Best Before date of March 30, 2008. They include Taylor Farms Gourmet Fruit Tray featuring Creamy Yogurt Dip, Taylor Fresh Melon Mix, Taylor Fresh Fruit Mix, and Fresh Fruit Tray with Creamy Strawberry Dip. Consumers are requested to dispose of these products.

FDA and CDC are continuing to investigate this outbreak. FDA has tested numerous samples of cantaloupe from the implicated producer, and has detected Salmonella Freetown. While this is different from the outbreak strain, the presence of any Salmonella in the cantaloupe justifies a recall action. A team of FDA investigators has traveled to Honduras in an effort to uncover the source of the contamination.

A complete and current list of recalled cantaloupe products can be found at the FDA web site. For an update of the status of the outbreak investigation, visit the CDC web site. Both of these web pages are updated periodically as new information becomes available.

A Cantaloupe Update

The CDC has posted on its web site an update on the investigation into the Salmonella Litchfield outbreak that has been linked to cantaloupe from the Honduran grower/packer Agropecuaria Montelibano.

The outbreak, which began in early January 2008, has involved 51 people in 16 US states and 9 people in Canada. At least 16 of the US victims were hospitalized. Fortunately, there have been no deaths. The Honduran cantaloupe has been implicated as a result of epidemiological investigations – interviews with victims to find a common food link for their illnesses. So far, the offending microbe has not been recovered from a sample of cantaloupe.

The FDA has provided on its web site a consolidated list of all recalled cantaloupe products resulting from this investigation. Please check this list for information on brand names, manufacturers and importers who have purchased, distributed or sold the implicated cantaloupe.

Fresh Express Recalls Cut Cantaloupe

As part of the on-going Honduran cantaloupe recalls, Fresh Express Foods of Medford, OR has announced a recall of its cut cubed processed cantaloupe. The cantaloupe used in this product was supplied to Fresh Express by C.H. Robinson, and originated with Agropecuaria Montelibano.

The cut cantaloupe was distributed to 2 local restaurants, 1 hospital and 1 retirement center in Medford and 1 restaurant in Klamath Fall Oregon. It was also sold in the deli department of Price Less grocery store in Cave Junction, OR.

No illnesses have been linked to the recalled products.

Honduran Cantaloupe In Colorado

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has provided a summary on its web site of the Honduran cantaloupe recalls affecting consumers in the state. Honduran cantaloupe from the grower/packer Agropecuaria Montelibano was implicated in one case of Salmonella Litchfield illness in Colorado.

Please check the information posted on the Colorado web site for details, and avoid consuming cantaloupe from this source.

Black Pepper Powder From Pakistan Recalled

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is alerting consumers in Alberta and British Columbia to a recall of 50-gram packages of "National Black Pepper Powder" bearing UPC 6 20514 00077 0 and B.B. END MAY. 2010.

The black pepper was imported from Pakistan and is being recalled by the importer, Pak National Foods Limited, because it may be contaminated with Salmonella. There have been no illnesses specifically associated with this product.

At the moment, there is no indication of any wider alert, but other spices from Pakistan have been refused entry into the United States from time to time. In December 2007, a shipment of curry powder from National Foods Limited was denied entry at the port of New York due to Salmonella contamination.

The Cantaloupe Recalls Continue...

As part of the fallout from the Honduran cantaloupe investigation, Tropifresh, Inc. of Los Angeles has recalled Agrolibano’s Produce Brand whole cantaloupes, due to a risk of Salmonella contamination. The cantaloupes were distributed through wholesalers in southern California, Canada and Pennsylvania.

The melons, which were supplied to Tropifresh by Agropecuaria Montelibano, may carry the label "Mike's Melon", or – if the labels have fallen off – may be unlabelled. Customers who have purchased these melons should return them to the store for a refund.

Importer Recalls Honduran Cantaloupes

In the latest development in the case of the contaminated cantaloupes, Central American Produce, Inc. of Pompano Beach, FL has announced a recall of cantaloupes grown and packed by Agropecuaria Montelibano.

The recalled cantaloupes have been implicated in an outbreak of Salmonella Litchfield that has sickened at least 50 people in the United States and 9 in Canada since the beginning of 2008. FDA first alerted consumers to the health hazard on March 22nd, when the agency issued an Import Alert. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency followed suit later the same day.

Melons have been shipped under various brand names, including "Mayan Pride" and "Mikes Melons". Some have been incorporated into fruit salads.

Charlie's Produce of Spokane, WA recalled several of its cut cantaloupe products on the weekend. While the recall notice stated that no illnesses have been associated with the company's products, The Washington Department of Health has reported 9 cases of Salmonella Litchfield infection.

If you have purchased cantaloupes and are unsure of their country of origin, check with the store. If you are experiencing any symptoms of Salmonella infection and have eaten cantaloupe recently, consult your family physician and be sure to mention the cantaloupe.

Honduran Cantaloupe - Let The Recalls Begin!

On Saturday, FDA issued an "Import Alert" on cantaloupes from the Honduran grower/packer Agropecuaria Montelibano. The cantaloupes have been implicated in an outbreak of Salmonella Litchfield in 16 US states and in Canada.

Over the next few days, we can expect to hear about retail-level recalls of the suspect cantaloupes. The first one appeared this morning.

Charlie's Produce of Spokane, WA has announced a precautionary recall of "Charlie's Produce Brand Cut Cantaloupe Products". The products were distributed to retail stores and food service establishments in Montana, eastern Washington and Idaho. While no illnesses have been associated with these cut fruit salads, several of the recalled items may contain cut cantaloupe from Agropecuaria. Customers should return any of the items listed in the recall notice to the store for a full refund.

Please consult the FDA notice for a list of the recalled items, or call Mike Ruff, Charlie's Food Safety Director, at 206-625-1412 for details.

Honduran Cantaloupe Update

Further to yesterday's announcement of the Honduran Cantaloupe recall due to a Salmonella outbreak, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has now posted a "Health Hazard Alert" on its web site. Canadian consumers who have purchased cantaloupes since the beginning of 2008 should read this notice.

For US consumers, please check the FDA "Import Alert" notice, which was posted yesterday.

Salmonella Hitches Ride On Honduran Cantaloupes

FDA has issued an import alert on cantaloupes from Agropecuaria Montelibano, a Honduran grower and packer. The cantaloupes are suspected of being the source of a Salmonella outbreak in the US and Canada.

Notices have been sent to all FDA field offices that cantaloupes from this company are to be detained at the port of entry. Importers, produce processors, grocers and food service operators in the US have been notified to remove from stock any cantaloupes from Agropecuaria Montelibano. FDA is advising consumers who have purchased cantaloupes to call the store and ask about the country of origin and the name of the grower/packer.

According to the FDA notice, these cantaloupes are associated with an outbreak of Salmonella Litchfield that has sickened 50 people in 16 states and an additional 9 people in Canada. Fourteen of the victims have been hospitalized. If you have experienced symptoms of Salmonella infection and have eaten cantaloupe recently, contact your doctor. Please navigate to the FDA news release link (above) for additional details.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has also issued a health alert. According to the agency's email notice, the cantaloupes were sold in the following provinces:

- Federated Co-Op in the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, North Western Ontario, Nunavut, Northwest Territories and Yukon;
- Canada Safeway stores in the province of British Columbia only.

It's possible that the cantaloupes were distributed more widely in Canada. Illnesses tied to this outbreak have been reported in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario and New Brunswick. Canadian consumers can obtain more information by calling Canada Safeway Limited at 1-800-SAFEWAY and CFIA at 1-800-442-2342 / TTY 1-800-465-7735. CFIA offices will be closed on Easter Monday, March 24th, but will reopen at 8:00am EDT Tuesday.

Two Recalls To Go With Your Morning Coffee

The US Food and Drug Administration has alerted consumers to avoid using "Green Paradise Fresh Italian Basil" as it may be contaminated with Salmonella. The basil, which was shipped to distributors in Southern California, Texas and Arizona, is being recalled by Top Line Specialty Produce of Los Angeles, CA. The product is packed in 1 lb. boxes. Consumers should return the basil to the store at which it was purchased for a full refund.

The FDA has also announced a recall of "Dried Roach" uneviscerated fish due to the risk of Clostridium botulinum. This product of Latvia was imported by Royal Seafood Baza Inc. and distributed through Net Cost Market stores in Philadelphia, PA and in Brooklyn and Staten Island, NY. Sale of uneviscerated fish is illegal in New York State, due to the elevated risk of Clostridium botulinum in this food.

Something Smells Fishy

The recent food safety agreement between the U.S. and China appears to be off to a rocky start, according to an article in today's Wall Street Journal.

Following the detection of prohibited chemicals in previous shipments of seafood from China, the FDA placed a hold on the importation of five types of seafood from that country until the shipments cleared lab testing (at the importer's expense). But an exception was made in September for seafood from one Chinese processor, Zhanjiang Guolian Aquatic Products Corp. Now it would appear that the exempted processor is on the Canadian government's import alert list due to the presence of nitrofuran in a shipment of seafood. The nitrofuran-contaminated shipment of seafood, rejected by Canadian authorities in October 2007, had been routed through the U.S.

The Wall Street Journal quotes Guolian's general manager, Chen Han, as saying that the Canadian action was a "mistake", and was due to another company having falsely used Guolian's name. Mr. Chen claims that his company has emailed the Canadian government about this situation but, according to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, no such email has been received.

Some questions have apparently been raised about the Guolian exemption. A former FDA employee, Benjamin England, suggested in the Wall Street Journal article that the Company's political connections with the Chinese government might have been a factor in the decision. Mr. Chen denies this, saying that the exemption is due to the Company's "good quality" operation.

The U.S. government has stated that Guolian's import "hold" exemption was part of a pilot project under the U.S.-China food safety agreement. Yet Guolian was added to the FDA's import detention list in April 2007, and then removed from that list just five months later - in September - three months before the announced food safety agreement between the U.S. and China. Something doesn't add up.

Managing Risks - A Page from the Australian Playbook

When my husband and I were running our business and trying to ship products to Australia, we had to deal with that country’s tough meat and dairy product import regulations. Australia’s requirements seemed a bit paranoid to us at the time, but their strict import provisions stood the country in good stead. Australia has never experienced a case of mad cow disease.

Australia developed a risk-based approach to food import control that the FDA would do well to examine and learn from. Imported foods fall into one of three categories.

“Risk categorized foods” are those thought to present the greatest risk for food-borne disease. These foods are subjected to the most intensive scrutiny by Food Standards Australia. The first five shipments of each food on the high risk list from each foreign producer are inspected. After five consecutive shipments of a given food have passed muster, one in four shipments of that food from that producer are held for inspection. After 20 successful inspections, the frequency of inspection drops to one in 20 shipments. In all cases, shipments selected for inspection are held until results are known. Any unsatisfactory result causes the risk clock to reset and, of course, the unsatisfactory shipment is refused entry.

“Active surveillance foods” represent the next lower level of perceived risk. Ten percent of shipments of these foods from each and every supplying country are sampled for lab analysis. Because of the lower perceived risk, shipments of these foods are released after sampling.

“Random surveillance” covers all remaining foods not included in one of the two higher risk categories. Five percent of these shipments are sampled randomly for lab analysis.

Food Safety Australia reviews the results of these inspections periodically and, if appropriate, moves foods to a higher or lower risk category.

No system can ensure 100% safety, but basing a screening program on scientific risk assessment, and adjusting that assessment as more information become available seems a logical way to go.

The FDA..Through Rose-colored Glasses

The latest on-line FDA Consumer update contained a Q&A session with the Director of FDA's Office of Regional Operations, Deborah Ralston. In response to a question about FDA's import surveillance program, Ms. Ralston said,

"For example, we work cooperatively with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to help identify shipments containing potentially dangerous foods and prevent them from entering the country. By law, certain information must be submitted to FDA about food products before they are allowed to enter the U.S. We keep our Prior Notice Center open to receive this information 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. This means that FDA knows in advance when and where specific food shipments will enter the United States, what those shipments will contain, the countries and entities where they originate, and the facility where the food was manufactured.

So although we don't physically inspect every product, we electronically examine 100% of imported food products before they reach our borders. Based on criteria we have set up, an automated system alerts us to any concerns. Then we investigate further and, if warranted, do a physical examination of the product."

But compare this statement to the following excerpt from the recently released internal FDA report:

"Many of the FDA systems reside on technology that has been in service beyond the usual life cycle. Systems fail frequently, and even email systems are unstable — most recently during an E. coli food contamination investigation. More importantly, reports of product dangers are not rapidly compared and analyzed, inspectors’ reports are still hand written and slow to work their way through the compliance system, and the system for managing imported products cannot communicate with Customs and other government systems (and often miss significant product arrivals because the system cannot even distinguish, for example, between road salt and table salt)."

FDA is overwhelmed and underfunded, and has been for many years. The problem gets worse day by day. Yet, instead of giving us an honest appraisal of the agency's problems, its spokespeople continue to paint a rosy picture of FDA's ability to carry out its diverse mandates. Is it any wonder that the agency is struggling to deal effectively with the deluge of imported products arriving at our ports of entry?

India's Dirty Little Secret

An Australian tennis player, Adil Hakeem, found out for himself this past week that India has a major food and water contamination problem. He developed a sudden bout of vomiting and fever on the eve of a tennis tournament - one of two back-to-back tournaments that he had entered in India.

For many decades after gaining its independence, India suffered from hunger and poverty. More recently, the country has become a major international economic power, but its food and water infrastructure has failed to keep up with the rest of the country's progress.

An article in the November 2007 issue of Smithsonian makes very clear the difficulties that surround attempts to reduce pollution in the Ganges River. In spite of well-meaning efforts on the part of government and private individuals, the Ganges remains a repository for raw sewage, chemical pollutants and - until recently - rotting corpses.

The food safety situation in India is not much better. The FDA issues monthly reports on-line listing, by country, products that have been refused entry into the United States. Over the past 12 months, India and China have been neck-and-neck in the race for the title of "Most Often Refused Entry". FDA inspectors have turned back 1,836 shipments from mainland China and 1858 shipments from India during the past year. In October 2007, 22% of the refused shipments from both countries were rejected due to the presence either of "filth" or of a pathogen - most often Salmonella.

In the wake of this year's series of product safety scandals, China has taken steps to improve its safety regulation system. The government has issued new regulations on food safety and, most recently, the country announced a crack-down on manufacturers of "inferior" drugs and medical devices. Will it take a major international product safety incident to prompt India to do the same?