Bonsoy Soy Milk: International Recall and Distribution List

Updated January 24, 2010

The number of countries that have posted alerts or recall notices for Bonsoy Soy Milk is growing, albeit slowly.

Following is a consolidated list of countries where I have determined that Bonsoy Soy Milk is sold, including those in which recalls and alerts have been announced. I'll be updating this list as more information is made public.

Austria

Bonsoy Soy Milk was distributed to Austria, according to EU Food Safety Notification #2010.0022

Australia

On December 24, 2009 Spiral Foods Pty Ltd recalled Bonsoy Soy Milk, 1L tetra pack, All Best Before 03.11.11, APN/EAN/TUN Number: 9312336049037. The recalled product was sold in Coles, Woolworths/Safeway, Metcash, Health Food Shops and cafes throughout Australia. Bonsoy Soy Milk also was distributed by European Foods Wholesalers, Pty. Ltd. (Perth, WA), which has issued its own recall notice to its customers.

According to an item in the January 24th edition of The Sydney Morning Herald, some cafés are ignoring this safety recall and continuing to serve Bonsoy Soy Milk. New South Wales Food Authority agents have raided at least one Sydney café (Luxe Bakery Café in Newtown) and confiscated several crates of Bonsoy. Cafés that knowing flout the recall order may face fines up to $500,000 for their actions. (Thanks to Linny in New South Wales for providing this information and story link).

Belgium

Bonsoy Soy Milk was distributed to Belgium, according to EU Food Safety Notification #2010.0022

Canada

According to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency: "The CFIA is aware of the Bonsoy Soy Milk Recall in Australia for high levels of iodine. The CFIA has conducted an investigation and we have not found any of this product imported into Canada from Japan or Australia."

Croatia

Bonsoy sold by Biovega.

Cyprus

Bonsoy Soy Milk was distributed to Cyprus, according to EU Food Safety Notification #2010.0022

Czech Republic

Bonsoy Soy Milk was distributed to the Czech Republic, according to EU Food Safety Notification #2010.0022

Denmark

Food Standards Agency announces the market withdrawal of all production lots of Bonsoy Soy Milk by Romer Products A/S and Helsam A/S. Bonsoy is sold in Health Food stores and over the internet. Consumers are advised to discard the product and to seek medical attention if they are suffering general malaise without any known cause.

France

Ministry of Health and Sports issues consumer alert. There is no retail distribution of Bonsoy in France; nevertheless, the product is available over the Internet and can be purchased for delivery in France. Consumers are strongly advised to avoid purchasing or drinking this product.

Germany

Bonsoy Soy Milk was distributed in Germany according to EU Food Safety Notification #2010.0022

Hong Kong

On December 24, 2009 the Hong Kong Centre for Food Safety (CFS) issued an alert to Hong Kong residents, advising that Bonsoy Soy Milk "... had been imported into Hong Kong. If consumers have bought the product, they should not drink it, and should seek medical advice if they have questions." CFS also alerted merchants to stop selling the product.

Ireland

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland has alerted distributors, retailers and consumers of Bonsoy Soy Milk to the elevated iodine hazard. All Food Business Operators, including wholesalers, distributors, caterers, retailers and restauranteurs have been instructed to remove the product and return it to their suppliers. Consumers are advised to either discard the recalled Bonsoy Soy Milk or return it to the store for a refund. Consumers who suspect that they may have been made ill as a result of drinking Bonsoy Soy Milk should seek medical attention.

Italy

Bonsoy Soy Milk was distributed to Italy, according to EU Food Safety Notification #2010.0022

Japan

Bonsoy Soy Milk a product of Muso Co., Ltd. (Osaka, Japan). No recall notices have been publicized.

Luxembourg

Bonsoy Soy Milk was distributed to Luxembourg, according to EU Food Safety Notification #2010.0022

Malaysia

Bonsoy is available from Matahari Organic and EcoGreen Organic.

Netherlands

Bonsoy is sold by G&W Gezondheidswinkel Ceres.

New Zealand

Although the New Zealand Food Safety Authority has made no recall announcement, Food Standards Australia New Zealand has clearly stated that Bonsoy Soy Milk described in the Australian recall notice was distributed in New Zealand. Bonsoy Soy Milk is available in retail stores in New Zealand, including Huckleberry Farms, a supermarket chain that specializes in organic and natural foods.

Poland

Sklep Dietetyczny sells Bonsoy Soy Milk in Poland.

Singapore

On December 31, 2009 the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) issued a mandatory recall notice for Bonsoy Soy Milk after its own testing confirmed the presence of a high level of iodine in the product. AVA has instructed the importer and retailers to stop selling the product, and advises consumers to either discard it or return it to their retailer for refund. Bonsoy is sold through Nature's Glory and other health food stores. Singapore reiterated its recall notice on January 6, 2010 in a formal news release.

Spain

Bonsoy can be found on-line at naturplus.es in Spain. EU Food Safety Notification #2010.0022 confirms that Bonsoy Soy Milk was distributed in Spain.

United Kingdom

January 14, 2010: The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) issued its latest Bonsoy update today. UK distributors of Bonsoy Soy Milk have confirmed to FSA that all existing stocks have been quarantined and have been recalled from customers. FSA has carried out tests on multiple batches of Bonsoy and has confirmed elevated levels of iodine in every batch tested. While the agency is unaware of any illnesses reported in the UK as a result of consuming Bonsoy Soy Milk, FSA suggests that anyone with concerns about iodine levels consider changing to an alternative brand of soy milk.

Bonsoy Soy Milk is widely available in Europe and Asia, and also is distributed in New Zealand. Please watch this site for updates as more countries announce product recalls or alerts.

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Salmonella in Salami (Or Is It Pepper?) Sickens 184 in 38 States

Rhode Island company recalls 1.24 million pounds of cured meats

Daniele International, Inc., a Rhode Island manufacturer of Italian-style cured meats, has recalled more than 1.2 million pounds of ready-to-eat pepper-coated salami and Italian-style sausage products after a combined investigation conducted by state and federal agencies linked one of the Company's products to a Salmonella outbreak.

CDC announced late yesterday that 184 people in 38 states have been infected with a strain of Salmonella Montevideo since early July. At least 35 people were hospitalized.

According to William Keane, a senior epidemiologist with the Oregon Department of Human Services (Public Health Division), this has been a difficult investigation.

"Daniele brand salami," said Keane, "has been identified as the source of a large and ongoing outbreak of salmonellosis."

“Many states have been working together to identify a source for these cases, which have been trickling in for months," Keane added, "This has been a very long and often frustrating investigation. We had gone down a lot of dead ends until the puzzle pieces finally started to fit together about this outbreak.”

The list of recalled items includes products sold under the Daniele, Dietz & Watson, Black Bear and Boar's Head brands. All of the packages of recalled meats are labeled with USDA establishment number "54" or "9992". The complete list of recalled items comprises:

• Daniele Deli Selection (20 oz)
• Daniele Italian Brand Gourmet Pack (16 oz)
• Daniele Italian Brand Gourmet Pack (8 oz)
• Daniele Surtido Fino Italiano (454 g)
• Dietz and Watson Artisan Collection Party Platter Pack (8 oz)
• Daniele Gourmet Combo Pack (16 oz)
• Daniele Surtido Fino Italiano (340 g)
• Daniele Brand Gourmet Pack (Emballage Assorti Gourmet Italian) (500 g)
• Boar’s Head All Natural Salame Coated with Coarse Black Pepper (8 oz)
• Daniele All Natural Salame Coated with Coarse Black Pepper” (10oz)
• Daniele Pepper Salame
• Black Bear Baby Genoa Pepper Salame (9 oz)
• Dietz & Watson Artisan Collection Baby Genoa Pepper Salame
• Daniele Gourmet Italian Deli Selection (600 g)
• Daniele Salame Bites Pepper Salame (7 oz)
• Daniele Natural Salame Coated with Coarse Black Pepper
• Daniele Gourmet Deli Selection (Assortment De Fines Charcuterie Italienne) (400g)
• Daniele deli Selection (32oz)

The recalled ready-to-eat meats were sold across the United States in grocery stores, supermarket chains, warehouse stores and on-line, and were exported to other unnamed countries. Among the retailers identified so far are: Costco, Kroger (including Fry's, QFC, Ralphs, Fred Meyer, and Smith's Food & Drug), Walmart, Sam’s Club, Stop & Shop, Amazon, ShopRite and Giant/Martin's.

Since the Daniele Gourmet Deli Selection and the Daniele Brand Gourmet Pack are listed in both English and French, it's likely that these items also were sold in Canada.

The association between Daniele ready-to-eat cured meats and this outbreak is strong, but not quite bulletproof. During the course of the investigation, Salmonella was detected in a sample of product that was "similar to" products purchased by outbreak victims. But the strain of Salmonella found in the product does not match the outbreak strain.

In my post this morning, I suggested that black pepper might be the source of the Salmonella Montevideo. Apparently, I wasn't alone in coming to this conclusion. Oregon reports that "State and federal public health agencies are working with the Rhode Island-based company to determine if pepper is the source of the contamination." Daniele has recalled all of its pepper-coated ready-to-eat meats as a precaution.

If pepper proves to be the source of contamination, this investigation will become more complex and farther reaching. Pepper-coated ready-to-eat meats are produced by other meat processors. Pepper-coatings also are used on other specialty foods, such as some cheeses. And let's not forget those tantalizing sprinkles of fresh-ground pepper offered at the table in restaurants.

Until this investigation has reached a firm conclusion, I would suggest avoiding any ready-to-eat food that is pepper-coated – unless it was cooked after coating – or that is seasoned with pepper at the table, such as a restaurant salad.

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Recall Roundup: January 23, 2010

Here is today's list of food safety recalls, product withdrawals and allergy alerts. The live links will take you directly to the official recall notices and company news releases that contain detailed information for each recall and alert.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link.

United States

• Food Safety Recall: Daniele, Inc. recalls "Pepper-Coated Salame" products due to Salmonella concerns. Investigation of 184 cases of salmonellosis in 38 states reveals that at least 11 victims consumed salame products from Daniele Italian Brand Gourmet Pack. Daniele meats are sold nationwide in supermarkets and high-end delis, including Giant/Martin's and ShopRite stores.
• Medical Device Recall: Nipro Medical Corporation recalls all GlucoPro Insulin Syringes with expiration dates before 2011-11 (Nov 1, 2011), because the needles may detach from the syringes during use.

Some supermarket chains post recall notices on their web sites for the convenience of customers. To see whether a recalled food was carried by your favorite supermarket, follow the live link to the supermarket's recall web site.

• A&P
• Big Y® World Class Market®
  
• BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc.
  
• Bloom
  
• Brookshire's
  
• Costco Wholesale Corporation (US stores)
  
• Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd.
  
• EDEKA (Germany)
• Food City
  
• Food Lion
  
• Giant Food LLC
• Gros Cidac (Italy)
• Hannaford Brothers Co.
  
• Harris Teeter
  
• Harvey's Supermarket
  
• H-E-B
• The Kroger Company*
  
• Price Chopper
  
• Raley's
• Roundy's Supermarkets, Inc.
  
• Sainsbury's
  
• ShopRite
  
• Stop & Shop
• Sweetbay Supermarkets
• Target
  
• Tops Friendly Markets
  
• Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
  
• Wegmans
  
• Whole Foods Market
  
• Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc.
  

*The Kroger umbrella encompasses numerous supermarket, marketplace and convenience store chains, listed on the Kroger corporate home page.

New Salmonella Outbreak In USA - 184 Cases Since July

Source of outbreak as yet unknown

CDC, USDA, FDA and state health agencies are working to determine the scope and the source of an outbreak of Salmonella Montevideo that has sickened as many as 184 people across the United States since July 2, 2009.

CDC reported last night that the 184 illnesses are spread over 38 states. California is hardest hit, with 30 cases; New York is next, with 15. Victims range in age from less than 1 year old to 88 years old. At least 35 people have been hospitalized.

Unaffected so far are: Alaska, Arkansas, Hawaii, Idaho, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Vermont and Wisconsin.

The outbreak strain is a common one, and CDC cautions that some of the 184 cases may not be related to this outbreak. Epidemiologists are trying to identify a common source for these illnesses. A contaminated food is the most likely suspect. No specific food has been identified, and CDC warns that it's not always possible to determine the source of a foodborne outbreak.

In a move that is related to this outbreak investigation, Daniele Inc. has recalled a number of Pepper-Coated Salame products. According to the Company's news release, 11 outbreak victims mentioned having consumed salame products from the "Daniele Italian Brand Gourmet Pack."

Daniele, which produces Italian-style specialty cured meats, has initiated this recall as a precaution. The Rhode Island-based company distributes its products to high-end delis and supermarkets in the US and also exports products to Latin America and some Asian countries.

It's interesting that Daniele's recall focuses only on the Company's Pepper-Coated Salame products, and not its other cured meats. Black pepper can be a very dirty product, microbiologically speaking, unless it has been irradiated or treated with ethylene oxide. Salmonella has been found in black pepper on several occasions.

If this Salmonella Montevideo outbreak is due to contaminated black pepper used in products such as Daniele's Pepper-Coated Salame, CDC investigators will have a very difficult job on their hands to sort out the implicated foods. A quick Google search on "pepper-coated" turned up at least two other food processors – Burgers' Smokehouse and Euroguild – that offer a range of pepper-coated meat products. And, of course, pepper is sold in every grocery store and supermarket in the country.

If you have experienced symptoms of Salmonella gastroenteritis (diarrhea, cramps, nausea, mild fever) recently, please seek medical attention and also contact your local health authorities. You might be part of this outbreak.

Until this outbreak is over or a source has been determined, it would be prudent to avoid pepper-coated foods and to decline that sprinkle of fresh-ground pepper on your pizza, salads, or other restaurant meals.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link.

Recall Roundup: January 22, 2010

Here is today's list of food safety recalls, product withdrawals and allergy alerts. The live links will take you directly to the official recall notices and company news releases that contain detailed information for each recall and alert.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link.

United States

• Food Safety Recall: The Wisconsin Cheeseman® recalls cheese log/cheese ball products in conjunction with the voluntary recall initiated by Parkers Farm, Inc. on January 15, 2010, because some of the items have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes bacteria.

Canada

• Allergy Alert: Marché St-Joseph (Montréal, QC) recalls Metro Plus MA TOMATE SÉCHÉE AU SOLEIL (My Sun Dried Tomato) due to the presence of undeclared sulfites.

Europe

• Food Safety Recall (Denmark): Futura Copenhagen A/S recalls Lollo Bionda lettuce, imported from France. The lettuce may be the source of an outbreak of norovirus gastroenteritis that has sickened more than 200 people in the last two weeks. The recalled lettuce was sold in restaurants, cafeterias, catering, greengrocers and convenience stores across the country.
• Dietary Supplement Recall (France): France has initiated a recall of the prescription weight-loss medication Sibutral (silbutramine), after a study demonstrates an increased risk of cardiovascular complications among patients treated for five years or more.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0062): Cadmium in frozen mussels from Chile; distributed in Greece.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0064): Unauthorised novel food ingredient tongkat ali (Eurycoma longifolia) in food supplement from the Netherlands; distributed in the Czech Republic.
• Animal Feed Safety Notification (EU #2010.0065): Salmonella Mbandaka in soybean meal from Argentina, via Slovenia; distributed in Austria.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0066): Too high content of colour E 110 - Sunset Yellow FCF and of colour E 151 - Brilliant Black BN / Black PN in lumpfish caviar from Denmark, via the Czech Republic; distributed in Slovakia.
• Animal Feed Safety Notification (EU #2010.0067): Salmonella in processed animal proteins from Spain; distributed in Belgium.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0068): Salmonella Livingstone (in 9 out of 12 samples /25g) in chicken fillets from Germany; distributed in Denmark.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0069): Nicotine (pesticide residue) in dried morels from Pakistan; distributed in France.

Australia and New Zealand

• Food Safety Alert (New Zealand): The Waikato District Health Board reminds consumers that all bi-valve shellfish on the Bay of Plenty coastline remain toxic and should not be harvested or eaten. Consumers who ignore this warning risk contracting paralytic shellfish poisoning.

Some supermarket chains post recall notices on their web sites for the convenience of customers. To see whether a recalled food was carried by your favorite supermarket, follow the live link to the supermarket's recall web site.

• A&P
• Big Y® World Class Market®
  
• BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc.
  
• Bloom
  
• Brookshire's
  
• Costco Wholesale Corporation (US stores)
  
• Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd.
  
• EDEKA (Germany)
• Food City
  
• Food Lion
  
• Giant Food LLC
• Gros Cidac (Italy)
• Hannaford Brothers Co.
  
• Harris Teeter
  
• Harvey's Supermarket
  
• H-E-B
• The Kroger Company*
  
• Price Chopper
  
• Raley's
• Roundy's Supermarkets, Inc.
  
• Sainsbury's
  
• ShopRite
  
• Stop & Shop
• Sweetbay Supermarkets
• Target
  
• Tops Friendly Markets
  
• Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
  
• Wegmans
  
• Whole Foods Market
  
• Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc.
  

*The Kroger umbrella encompasses numerous supermarket, marketplace and convenience store chains, listed on the Kroger corporate home page.

As If Salmonella and E. coli O157:H7 Weren't Enough...

Lovers of spinach salad must worry about Cryptosporidium, too!

Cryptosporidium in irrigation water can invade and be protected by spinach tissue, according to an article published in this month's Applied and Environmental Microbiology.

This protozoan pathogen, which the authors describe as "... an environmentally resistant, abundant, and ubiquitous human pathogen ..." has been found in 36% of irrigation waters used on crops that are typically eaten raw in the US and Central America.

Cryptosporidium became notorious in the United States in 1993, when it contaminated the drinking water supply in Milwaukee, WI and sickened an estimated 403,000 people. The microbe has been associated with waterborne outbreaks of gastroenteritis on numerous occasions both before and since the Milwaukee outbreak.

The pathogen also has been fingered in foodborne disease outbreaks – usually as a result of foodhandler contamination in a restaurant or foodservice facility. Occasionally, Cryptosporidium has contaminated fresh produce such as dropped apples used in apple cider. Unpasteurized cider was linked to a 1996 outbreak of Cryptosporidium in New England.

Now, spinach farmers – and spinach lovers – may face a more serious problem. If the results reported in Applied and Environmental Microbiology by USDA researchers are correct, Cryptosporidium oocytes (the reproductive form, equivalent to an egg) in irrigation water can attach firmly to spinach leaves in the field, and even enter the leaf tissue through the pores. Once inside, the oocytes are completely protected from vigorous washing and from disinfectants (such as chlorine).

It doesn't take many Cryptosporidium oocytes to infect a healthy person – 9 or 10 often are all that's needed. Some infected individuals will experience little or no discomfort. Others, especially those who are unusually susceptible to infection, may suffer from severe – even life-threatening gastroenteritis.

Cryptosporidium parvum-contaminated leafy produce could be the next major food safety problem. It is widespread, difficult to kill, and – because it can't be cultured in the lab – difficult to detect in foods.

Irradiation of leafy green produce might become our only option.

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Recall Roundup: January 21, 2010

Here is today's list of food safety recalls, product withdrawals and allergy alerts. The live links will take you directly to the official recall notices and company news releases that contain detailed information for each recall and alert.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link.

United States

• Food Mislabeling Recall: Meijer recalls Meijer Natural Crackers, manufactured by North American Baking, due to a labeling error.
• Food Safety Recall: Park 100 Foods, Inc. (Kokomo, IN) recalls approximately 19,200 pounds of frozen chicken pot pie products (lot code 28209) that may contain foreign materials, after a consumer complained of having found metal straight pins in the product. The recalled pot pies were distributed by Market Day through Internet or catalog sales in Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
• False Labeling Court Action: The CEO of Sterling Seafood Corporation (Cresskill, NJ) pleads guilty to importing falsely labeled fish from Vietnam and evading over $60 million in federal tariffs, as well as selling over $500,000 in similarly misbranded fish purchased from another importer in the United States.

Canada

• Dietary Supplement Alert: Health Canada warns consumers not to purchase or use "The Slimming Coffee" (previously sold as "Lose Weight Coffee"), because this product contains the undeclared prescription drug sibutramine. The weight-loss product (manufactured in China by MeiYa Technology Building and imported and distributed by Gateway International of Ville Saint-Laurent, Québec) is not authorized for sale in Canada. Gateway has stopped selling the product.
• Consumer Product Safety Alert: Health Canada warns consumers that excessive lead has been found in some children's jewelry products sold in Canada.
• OTC Pharmaceutical Product Safety Recall: McNeil Consumer Healthcare (Canada) recalls certain production lots of ROLAIDS® Antacid Tablets, sold in 100-count and 150-count bottles, due to the presence of trace amounts of a chemical called 2,4,6-tribromoanisole.

Europe

• Food Safety Recall (Denmark): KB Finest A/S recalls Fresh organic salmon, 250g (Batch number: 36341 and 36349) because the product is labeled with an incorrect expiry date. The recalled item was sold in Co-op stores across Denmark.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0059): Mold and insect infestation in mushrooms in vinegar with salt (Agaricus psalliota biospora) from China; distributed in Italy.
• Allergy Alert Notification (EU #2010.0060): Traces of milk ingredient (casein) in food supplement from France; distributed in Spain.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0061): Unauthorised use of colour E 127 - erythrosine in sugar coated fennel seeds from India; distributed in the United Kingdom.

Some supermarket chains post recall notices on their web sites for the convenience of customers. To see whether a recalled food was carried by your favorite supermarket, follow the live link to the supermarket's recall web site.

• A&P
• Big Y® World Class Market®
  
• BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc.
  
• Bloom
  
• Brookshire's
  
• Costco Wholesale Corporation (US stores)
  
• Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd.
  
• EDEKA (Germany)
• Food City
  
• Food Lion
  
• Giant Food LLC
• Gros Cidac (Italy)
• Hannaford Brothers Co.
  
• Harris Teeter
  
• Harvey's Supermarket
  
• H-E-B
• The Kroger Company*
  
• Price Chopper
  
• Raley's
• Roundy's Supermarkets, Inc.
  
• Sainsbury's
  
• ShopRite
  
• Stop & Shop
• Sweetbay Supermarkets
• Target
  
• Tops Friendly Markets
  
• Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
  
• Wegmans
  
• Whole Foods Market
  
• Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc.
  

*The Kroger umbrella encompasses numerous supermarket, marketplace and convenience store chains, listed on the Kroger corporate home page.

Recall Roundup: January 20, 2010

Here is today's list of food safety recalls, product withdrawals and allergy alerts. The live links will take you directly to the official recall notices and company news releases that contain detailed information for each recall and alert.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link.

United States

• Food Safety Recall: BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc. alerts its customers to a recall by Ethnic Fancy Foods, Inc. of Himalayan Harvest Brown Basmati Rice 3.25 lb. jar with “best by” dates of August 15, 2011 – November 15, 2011. The rice is being recalled due to an insect (weevils) infestation.

Canada

• Health Hazard Alert - Tampering: Calgary Co-operative Association Ltd. expands its earlier consumer alert to include bulk buns and loaves, bulk food items, packaged cheeses and refrigerated juices (sold in the produce section), purchased from the Calgary Co-Op Oakridge Centre grocery store at 2580 Southland Drive SW between Friday, January 15, 2010 and Monday, January 18, 2010. These products may contain objects such as pins, sewing needles and buttons as a result of product tampering. A criminal investigation is in progress.

Europe

• Dietary Supplement Recall (Denmark): PartyPills.dk recalls 9 nutritional supplement products that may contain undeclared hazardous ingredients. The recalled products were sold in shops and discos in East and Central Jutland and from the website www.partypills.dk.
• Food Safety Recall - Update (Denmark): Kokken og Køkkenhaven ApS updates earlier recall of leaky and deformed packages of entrées and soups to include additional distribution information.
• Food Safety Notification - Update (EU #2010.0022): High content of iodine (31000 µg/l) in Bonsoy soy milk product from Japan, dispatched from Australia; distributed in Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain and the United Kingdom.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0052): Colour migration (red) from outside wrapping of white chocolate confection filled with truffle from France; distributed in Finland.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0053): Unauthorised E 386 - disodium ethylene diamine tetra acetate (DEDTA) in mayonnaise from Ukraine; distributed in Latvia.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0055): Unauthorised E 386 - disodium ethylene diamine tetra acetate (DEDTA) in mustard sauce from Ukraine; distributed in Latvia.

Some supermarket chains post recall notices on their web sites for the convenience of customers. To see whether a recalled food was carried by your favorite supermarket, follow the live link to the supermarket's recall web site.

• A&P
• Big Y® World Class Market®
  
• BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc.
  
• Bloom
  
• Brookshire's
  
• Costco Wholesale Corporation (US stores)
  
• Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd.
  
• EDEKA (Germany)
• Food City
  
• Food Lion
  
• Giant Food LLC
• Gros Cidac (Italy)
• Hannaford Brothers Co.
  
• Harris Teeter
  
• Harvey's Supermarket
  
• H-E-B
• The Kroger Company*
  
• Price Chopper
  
• Raley's
• Roundy's Supermarkets, Inc.
  
• Sainsbury's
  
• ShopRite
  
• Stop & Shop
• Sweetbay Supermarkets
• Target
  
• Tops Friendly Markets
  
• Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
  
• Wegmans
  
• Whole Foods Market
  
• Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc.
  

*The Kroger umbrella encompasses numerous supermarket, marketplace and convenience store chains, listed on the Kroger corporate home page.

Recall Roundup: January 19, 2010

Here is today's list of food safety recalls, product withdrawals and allergy alerts. The live links will take you directly to the official recall notices and company news releases that contain detailed information for each recall and alert.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link.

United States

• Food Safety Recall: Huntington Meat Packing Inc. (Montebello, CA) recalls approximately 864,000 pounds of beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7. According to USDA, the problem was discovered during a Food Safety Assessment (FSA) by USDA (Food Safety and Inspection Service) personnel. The assessment led to a further examination of the plant's records, resulting in this recall. The USDA investigation is ongoing. The recalled beef products were processed between January 5, 2010, and January 15, 2010, and were shipped to distribution centers, restaurants, and hotels within the State of California. No illnesses have been reported.
• Food Safety Recall: Giant Eagle recalls Giant Eagle brand and Food Club brand frozen loose Hash Browns after an independent lab confirms several samples contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. The Hash Browns were processed by Mr. Dell Farms, Inc. (Kearney, MO).

Canada

• Food Safety Recall: Calgary Co-op Oakridge Centre recalls bulk bakery products, bulk food items and packaged cheeses, which may contain small metal objects. The recall covers items purchased since January 15, 2010. The contamination is the result of a tampering incident. Calgary Co-op has notified the Calgary Police Department, which has initiated a criminal investigation.

Europe

• Food Safety Recall (Denmark): Højer Pølser A/S recalls Smoked Salmon Filets (Production Dates for the period 28.11.2009 - 06.01.2010; Best before dates in the period 29.02.2010-06.04.2010) after the company's own monitoring program detects Listeria monocytogenes. The recalled filets were sold – either as whole filets or pieces – in: INCO Brondby, Lynhjems Eftf Elsinore, SuperBrugsen, Rødekro, Rudbøl Grænsekro.
• Food Safety Recall (Denmark): Kokken og Køkkenhaven ApS- Fields og Flavor recalls four flavors of Organic Soups due to leaky packaging. The recalled soup products were sold at Hour Net and Super Best shops in the Greater Copenhagen area and at Portalen i Greve (Greve Arts & Music House)
• Food Safety Recall (Denmark): Dansk Supermarked recalls Chicken breast fillets (Packs of 450g; Production Date 06/01/2010; Expiry date 17.01.2010), produced by Wiesenhof in Germany and sold through Net-shops after Salmonella was found in this production lot.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0049): Salmonella infantis in chocolate cakes with marshmallow on top from Serbia; distributed in Slovenia.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0050): Salmonella Virchow in frozen black tiger scampi skewer from Vietnam; distributed in Norway.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0051): Salmonella Newport in Nile perch from Uganda; distributed in Germany.

Some supermarket chains post recall notices on their web sites for the convenience of customers. To see whether a recalled food was carried by your favorite supermarket, follow the live link to the supermarket's recall web site.

• A&P
• Big Y® World Class Market®
  
• BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc.
  
• Bloom
  
• Brookshire's
  
• Costco Wholesale Corporation (US stores)
  
• Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd.
  
• EDEKA (Germany)
• Food City
  
• Food Lion
  
• Giant Food LLC
• Gros Cidac (Italy)
• Hannaford Brothers Co.
  
• Harris Teeter
  
• Harvey's Supermarket
  
• H-E-B
• The Kroger Company*
  
• Price Chopper
  
• Raley's
• Roundy's Supermarkets, Inc.
  
• Sainsbury's
  
• ShopRite
  
• Stop & Shop
• Sweetbay Supermarkets
• Target
  
• Tops Friendly Markets
  
• Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
  
• Wegmans
  
• Whole Foods Market
  
• Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc.
  

*The Kroger umbrella encompasses numerous supermarket, marketplace and convenience store chains, listed on the Kroger corporate home page.

Food Club, Giant Eagle Hash Browns Recalled

Listeria monocytogenes confirmed in some products

More recalls to follow?

Giant Eagle has recalled the following frozen, loose hash brown products after an independent testing lab confirmed the presence of Listeria monocytogenes in some of the products.

• Giant Eagle Country Style Hash Browns (UPC 300341086)
• Giant Eagle Western Style Hash Browns (UPC 3003401076)
• Giant Eagle Southern Hash Browns (UPC 3003401075)
• Giant Eagle Diced Hash Browns (UPC 300341087)
• Giant Eagle Shredded Hash Browns (UPC 300341088)
• Food Club Shredded Hash Browns (UPC 3680006530)

The regional supermarket chain announced this voluntary recall late yesterday (January 18, 2010). According to the Company's news release, it has received no reports of illness, and no other Giant Eagle products are affected.

Giant Eagle is a regional supermarket chain with 222 supermarkets and 154 fuel and convenience stores in western Pennsylvania, Ohio, north central West Virginia and Maryland.

Food Club and Giant Eagle Hash Browns are manufactured by Mr. Dell Foods, Inc. (Kearney, MO) on behalf of Topco Associates. Mr. Dell also manufactures the Mr. Dell's and O'Brien's brands of frozen hash browns – both of which have been the subject of supermarket-level recalls since January 1st.

Topco Associates (Skokie, IL) is a member-owned company that provides exclusive procurement, quality assurance, packaging, and other services to its member-owners, including supermarket retailers, wholesalers, and foodservice companies. Members include more than 50 well-known regional supermarket chains such as Price Chopper, Winn-Dixie, Giant Eagle, Stater Bros., andMeijer.

Shop-Rite (not a Topco member) was the first to recall frozen Hash Browns, advising its customers on January 4th that it had recalled ShopRite Southern Style Hash Browns (32 oz.UPC: 41190-40059), after "... routine testing by a regulatory agency..." determined that "... there is the potential of contamination with Listeria Monocytogenes." Recalls of Food City Hash Browns came next, followed by Mr. Dell's and O'Briens.

I contacted Mr. Dell Foods by telephone and email on January 13th for comment on the initial series of recalls. The Company declined to respond to my verbal and written requests for information.

Listeria monocytogenes infections produce nothing worse than mild gastrointestinal or flu-like symptoms in most otherwise healthy adults. But elderly individuals, young children, people with reduced immunity and pregnant women are susceptible to more severe – sometimes fatal – illness. Pregnant women who are infected with this microbe may miscarry or give birth to an infected baby. A 2008 Canadian outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes resulted in 22 deaths.

Thorough cooking to an internal temperature of 145ºF should kill Listeria monocytogenes, just as it kills Salmonella or E. coli O157:H7. Microwave cooking is not reliable, as it is uneven – producing "cold spots" in which the pathogen might survive. Foods such as frozen Hash Browns are meant to be cooked thoroughly before being eaten. Never taste uncooked Hash Browns – whether thawed or still frozen – right out of the package.

Listeria monocytogenes has a highly variable and very long incubation period. While mild illnesses usually will begin within a few days after infection, it can take more than two months before symptoms of severe illness show themselves.

If you think that you or a family member is suffering from symptoms of a Listeria monocytogenes infection, please seek medical attention. If you believe that you might have become infected as a result of consuming uncooked or undercooked frozen Hash Browns, report this to FDA and to your local or state health authorities.

Now that Listeria monocytogenes has been recovered from multiple samples, I expect that a full FDA investigation – and more recalls – will follow shortly. Please check back for updates.

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Recall Roundup: January 18, 2010

Here is today's list of food safety recalls, product withdrawals and allergy alerts. The live links will take you directly to the official recall notices and company news releases that contain detailed information for each recall and alert.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please click here or submit your request using the sidebar link.

United States

• Counterfeit Pharmaceutical Alert: FDA alerts consumers about a counterfeit and potentially harmful version of Alli 60 mg capsules.
• Food Safety Recall: Huntington Meat Packing Inc. (Montebello, CA) recalls approximately 864,000 pounds of beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7.

Europe

• Food Safety Alert (France): Ministry of Health and Sports issues consumer alert about elevated iodine levels in Bonsoy Soy Milk.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0043): Mold on pitta bread from the United Kingdom; distributed in Denmark.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0044): Mercury in frozen sliced swordfish fillet (Xiphias Gladius) from Cyprus, with raw material from Taiwan; distributed in Cyprus.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0045): Excessive sulphite in dried pitted apricots with raw material from Turkey, via the Czech Republic; distributed in Slovakia.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0046): Histamine poisoning outbreak suspected to be caused by fresh sliced tuna from Sri Lanka; distributed in Denmark and Italy.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0047): Dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs in frozen sardines from France; distributed in France and the Netherlands.
• Food Safety Notification (EU #2010.0048): Dead mouse in frozen green beans from Belgium; distributed in Italy.

Some supermarket chains post recall notices on their web sites for the convenience of customers. To see whether a recalled food was carried by your favorite supermarket, follow the live link to the supermarket's recall web site.

• A&P
• Big Y® World Class Market®
  
• BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc.
  
• Bloom
  
• Brookshire's
  
• Costco Wholesale Corporation (US stores)
  
• Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd.
  
• EDEKA (Germany)
• Food City
  
• Food Lion
  
• Giant Food LLC
• Gros Cidac (Italy)
• Hannaford Brothers Co.
  
• Harris Teeter
  
• Harvey's Supermarket
  
• H-E-B
• The Kroger Company*
  
• Price Chopper
  
• Raley's
• Roundy's Supermarkets, Inc.
  
• Sainsbury's
  
• ShopRite
  
• Stop & Shop
• Sweetbay Supermarkets
• Target
  
• Tops Friendly Markets
  
• Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
  
• Wegmans
  
• Whole Foods Market
  
• Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc.
  

*The Kroger umbrella encompasses numerous supermarket, marketplace and convenience store chains, listed on the Kroger corporate home page.