eFoodAlert.com: Recalls and Alerts: April 19, 2011

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Here is today's list of food safety recalls, product withdrawals, allergy alerts and miscellaneous compliance issues. 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.

United States

Allergy Alert: Cinderella Sweets recalls Cindy's Scrumptious Chocolate Chip Pound Cake, 16 oz., due to the presence of undeclared egg. Due to a labeling error, the product packaging indicates "Egg Free" but eggs are listed on the ingredient statement.

Allergy Alert: S&M (USA) Enterprise Corp recalls Rain Swiss Roll, Banana Flavor (160g uncoded cardboard box; Product of China), because the product contains undeclared eggs. The recalled product was distributed nationwide.

Food Safety Recall: Charcuterie La Tour Eiffel (Montreal, Canada) recalls all Summersweet seafood mousses and dips after samples from two lot codes of Salmon & Spinach Mouse were found to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. The recalled mousses and dips (see FDA recall notice for product list) were sold in retail outlets in New York, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Florida, California and Texas, including in Ralphs supermarkets. The manufacturer has suspended production pending the outcome of an investigation into the source of the contamination.

Food Safety Recall: Royal Sweet Bakery, Inc. (Brooklyn, NY) recalls Herring in Vegetable Oil Filling, after the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets determined that the fish was improperly eviscerated prior to processing and may, therefore, be contaminated with spores of Clostridium botulinum.

Food Safety Recall/Outbreak Investigation Update: As of April 18th, The Rhode Island Department of Health has identified 79 confirmed and suspect cases of salmonellosis linked to baked goods from De Fusco's Bakery in Johnston, RI. Forty-eight cases were lab-confirmed; 30 people were hospitalized, and there have been two Salmonella-associated deaths.

Salmonella Outbreak Investigation Update: During the past two years (beginning April 9, 2009), 216 Salmonella illnesses have been confirmed in 41 states as a result of contact with water frogs, especially African dwarf frogs. The outbreak victims were infected with a strain of Salmonella Typhimurium that has been traced to a single African dwarf frog breeding facility in California. The outbreak strain also was recovered from a water sample collected in March 2011 from an aquarium containing African dwarf frogs in the household of a sick infant. Approximately 30% of the outbreak victims were hospitalized as a result of the infection.

Food Safety Alert: A retail-level survey of 100 samples of raw chicken (including whole fryers and packages of chicken parts) sold in Fred Meyer, Safeway, QFC, Whole Foods, Costco, Sam's Club, Albertsons, Thriftway, PCC Natural Markets and Ken's Market stores in the Seattle area from March 1st to April 4th revealed the presence of Staphylococcus aureus (42 samples), Campylobacter (65 samples), Salmonella (19 samples), Listeria (1 sample) and E. coli O126 (1 sample). Ten of the samples were contaminated with a methicillin-resistant strain of Staphylococcus aureus.

Recreational Water Advisory Update (Oregon): A heath advisory for contact with marine water at Seaside Beach in Clatsop County, Oregon was lifted after further testing showed that fecal bacteria levels have subsided at the beach.

FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Brinkman Turkey Farms, Inc. (Findlay, OH) that a January/February 2011 inspection of the company's low-acid canned food manufacturing facility revealed significant deviations from the Low-Acid Canned Food regulations.

FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Schindler's Broad Run Cheese House, Inc. (Dover, OH) that a series of inspections carried out between September 2010 and December 2010 revealed serious deviations from Current Good Manufacturing Practice (CGMP) in Manufacturing, Packing, or Holding Human Food.

FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Hocean Food Corporation (Los Angeles, CA) that a November/December 2010 inspection of the company's rice noodle processing establishment revealed serious violations of the seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) regulation and the Current Good Manufacturing Practice regulation for foods.

FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Delta Airlines, Inc. (Atlanta, GA) that an inspection of a Delta aircraft in Atlanta uncovered the presence of rodent excreta pellets and mammalian urine at various locations the aircraft.

FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Omega Nutriton U.S.A., Inc. (Bellingham, WA) that a December 2010 inspection of the company's dietary supplement manufacturing facility revealed serious violations of the Current Good Manufacturing Practice (CGMP) regulations for Dietary Supplements.

Canada

Allergy Alert: Aliments Trigone Inc. recalls Les Moissonneries du Pays brand Green Buckwheat Flour Stone Ground Finely Milled (1 kg., Code 349642), due to the presence of undeclared gluten. The recalled product was distributed in the province of Québec.

Allergy Alert: Armstrong Food Service recalls Roast Beef (Product code 123790; Best Before dates up to and including 21/04/11), Shaved Roast Beef (Product code 124804; Best Before dates up to and including 21/04/11), and Thin Sliced Shaved Roast Beef (Product code 124802; Best Before dates up to and including 21/04/11) due to the presence of undeclared soy. The recalled products were distributed to hotels, restaurants and institutional customers in Nova Scotia., Shaved

Health Product Recall: Mary Ginseng House recalls Mary Ginseng House 100% Pure High Calibre Pow Sum Ontario Genseng after Health Canada's testing revealed the presence of Klebsiella oxytoca, Pantoea sp. and Enterobacter cloacae in product samples. These bacteria can cause serious infection in an individual whose immune system has been weakened by another illness or chronic condition.

FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Galati Cheese Company Ltd. (Windsor, ON) that a January 2011 inspection of the company's cheese manufacturing facility revealed a serious violation of the Current Good Manufacturing Practice in Manufacturing, Packing, or Holding Human Food, in that the company failed to store and transport finished food under conditions that will protect the food against physical, chemical, and microbial contamination.

Europe

Allergy Alert (UK): Wm Morrison Supermarkets PLC recalls Morrisons Fresh Ideas Mini Chicken Roast, 411g (Use by 22 April 2011), Morrisons 6 Carrot Cake Slices (Best before 11 May 2011), and Morrisons The Best Prawn & Smoked Salmon Cocktail, 140g (Use by 20 April 2011), due to the presence of undeclared allergens.

Petting Farm Outbreak Investigation (Wales, UK): Public Health Wales is investigating an outbreak of Cryptosporidium in an unspecified number of people who fell ill over the past twelve months following farm and "lamb petting" events at Erddig Hall.

Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands

Food Safety Enforcement Action (Abu Dhabi): Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority has ordered the closure of Al Tazaj Fakieh Grilled Chicken (License No. 1043939), a restaurant at the Hamdan Centre building on Hamdan Bin Mohamed Street, for repeated violation of food safety rules.

Food Safety Enforcement Action (China): Food quality inspectors raided steamed bun producers in Zhejiang Province, and found tens of thousands of buns containing banned dyes and other chemicals sold to local schools.

Chinese Medicine Safety Recall (Hong Kong): Lai Sing Medicine Factory Limited recalls Prolonged Man Power Essence, as its lead level exceeds the permitted limit.

Chinese Medicine Safety Recall (Hong Kong): Lee Sze Trading Co. recalls Lee Sze Texiao Houtong Wan, as its arsenic level exceeds the permitted limit.

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.