WHAT IS A ”CLASS I” FOOD RECALL?

If you are following the American food product recalls put out by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA/FSIS), you will occasionally see the words “Class I Recall.” So what does that mean?

Class I food recalls are the worst kind. Putting it most simply, these are recalls of contaminated food that, if you ate it, could not just make you sick, or send you to the hospital, but kill you (or, in the case of pregnant women, their unborn child).

Here’s the official definition of a Class I recall:

This is a health hazard situation where there is a reasonable probability that the use of the product will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death.

An example of this kind of recall is the ongoing one by Reser’s Fine Foods which involves hundreds of products distributed nationwide in the U.S. and in Canada (in fact, it was microbiological testing by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency Canadians – not the American testing – that turned up the problem ).

So why can these innocent sounding recalled salads, spreads, dips and other ready-to-eat (convenience)food products be so deadly? Because they may be contaminated with the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes. Take special care pregnant women and elderly or ill people whose immune system is no longer functioning 100%.

And don’t let the wording of the recalls fool you. Yes, it may be true that no illnesses were reported from most of the products recalled – as yet. It could take 70 or more days for the symptoms to appear.

So much for “fine” foods.

To your good health,

TSF

A LOAD OF FOOD RECALL ANNOUNCEMENTS!

Today the U.S. government is back to work at full force. That includes the Food and Drug Administration, which regulates over 80% of our food and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which regulates the rest. So both agencies are catching up with announcement of ongoing recalls. It is certainly clear that contaminants were busily at work while the government was shut down.

Here are some of the recent food recalls. (As usual, I am not listing any food recalls because of allergens):

Costco’s El Camino Real store in South San Francisco, Calif., is recalling 9,043 units (approximately 39,755 lbs.) of rotisserie chicken products that may be contaminated with a strain of Salmonella Heidelberg (I've already blogged this one: see previous post).

Turkey Hill Dairy of Conestoga, Pa., is recalling certain packages of Fudge Ripple Premium Ice Cream and of Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Premium Ice Cream, and Moose Tracks Stuff’d Frozen Dairy Dessert. The reason - a finding of metal shavings. (Not exactly what we want in our dessert).

Orange County Produce, LLC ("OC Produce") of California is recalling fresh red and green Bell Peppers for potential contamination with Salmonella. (Ooof - I just bought some..).

Garden Fresh Foods, a Milwaukee, WI. establishment, is recalling approximately 6,694 additional pounds of ready-to-eat chicken and ham products due to possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes bacteria (This is an expansion of an earlier recall).

Asia Cash & Carry Inc. of Maspeth, New York has recalled PRAN brand Tumeric Spice Powder sold in 8.82 oz. jars. It was found to contain high levels of lead. This can cause health problems, particularly to small children, infants and pregnant women.

In all - a nice cross-section of our food supply. And if you think this is bad for the past few days, you should see the recalls for medical devices, drugs, injectables and supplements!

Enjoy your dinner.

To your good health,

TSF

WHY ARE PACKAGED SANDWICHES RISKY?

Yesterday I warned pregnant women not to eat pre-packed sandwiches because of the Listeria monocytogenes contamination risks. By the way, the same goes for anyone else with immune system problems. Maybe I should explain a bit more why ready-to-eat sandwiches are so risky.

The dangerous L. monocytogenes bacterium is often present in the fillings used for such sandwiches - deli meats and poultry, cheeses, prepared salads, seafood products, and so on. And even if these bacteria are not in the ingredients used, they can enter at the sandwich-making facility in both contact and non-contact surfaces. L. monocytogenes is widely present in nature (soil, water, plants) and from there moves to drains, floors, machinery, packaging surfaces, cutting boards and even the air of the sandwich making facility. A high percentage of workers are also carriers (estimates vary).

Over the years, a number of sandwich-making facilities in the U.S. have had to gone out of business because of bad Listeria contamination. In some cases, the government, in the form of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has had to step in and actually get a court order to close the plant down. This happened just a month ago ( December, 2011) in the case of Triple A Services, Inc because inspections of the plant repeatedly turned up Listeria bacteria.

Then there's something else. When the sandwich is first put together, there may not be so many bacteria in it - just a few. In other words, not enough to make you sick. But some of these sandwiches have a shelf life (in the refrigerator, of course) of three weeks or so (and much longer in the freezer). Look at the dates on the packaging next time you are thinking of buying one at a convenience stores, Starbucks or anywhere else. Freshly made? Don't kid yourself!

Unfortunately, unlike most other dangerous bacteria, Listeria monocytogenes can multiply in low-oxygen environments and at refrigerator temperatures. Ten bacteria become a hundred, then a thousand, and then ten thousand. In other words, the longer that sandwich sits there, the more dangerous it can become.

As I said yesterday - pass on that pre-packaged sandwich. I have even started making my own to take on flights. Besides, it tastes better. And isn't loaded with preservatives.

To your good health,

TSF

A BAD FEW WEEKS FOR READY-TO-EAT FOODS

At least in the U.S., and no doubt elsewhere as well, there are regular recalls for ready-to-eat, or "convenience" food products. The reason is usually that testing has turned up dangerous bacteria in the food. Since they are "ready" for eating, and are therefore rarely cooked, such bacteria are also more likely to cause illnesses.

For instance, between July 5 and July 26 - a period of just three weeks, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued 11 recalls for meat-containing ready-to-eat foods. Two of the product recalls were simply for mislabeling or undeclared allergens (which I do not blog) However, nine recalls are taking place because testing by USDA turned up pathogenic bacteria in the food. Of these, 7 (counting two expanded recalls) were due to Listeria monocytogenes bacteria being found . The other two were for Salmonella bacteria.

You can see why I keep saying that pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems should go easy on eating ready-to-eat foods.

To your good health,
TSF

EXPANDING FOOD RECALLS

If you follow food recalls, you will realize that they often start small and get bigger. What I mean is that originally we are told that a few specific products and lots of a food item may be contaminated. Then, some days or even weeks later, we are told that there are actually a few more, and then even more. It happens over and over again.

And it happened this past week. The recalls involved ready-to-eat meat products that were contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes bacteria. One recalling food producer was Flying Food Group, of Georgia, which produced these products for Starbucks and the other was the well-known Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation of Texas. Both had to expand their recalls six days after they were initially made, to include additional items produced at the same plant, which had not been named in the original recall.

What happens if bacteria are found, is that other foods produced at the same plant or using the same suspect ingredients, or, the same equipment, are tested as well. And that is when additional contaminated products often start turning up and more have to be recalled.

So what does this have to do with the health-conscious consumer? Actually, quite a lot. Say, for instance, that you are a pregnant woman who needs to involve being exposed to Listeria bacteria at any cost. In that case, as soon as a recall is announced for one of a company's products, avoid any similar ones for at least a week or two, in case they turn out to be risky as well - just in case. If you read my alerts, you'll see that I often advise this. Such precautions may sound a bit extreme. But they really aren't. Not if the life of your unborn child could be involved.

To your good health,
TSF

UPDATE: Flying Foods Group issued a third expansion of th recall on July 28. Here's a summary of how it has gone so far: July 19th - 2 RTE foods recalled (made for Starbucks only). July 26 - recall expanded to cover 10 items. July 28 - recall expanded to cover 40 items (with now 3 distributors). Ugh!

NEW U.S. FOOD SAFETY REGULATIONS - FINALLY!

They're out. Finally. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has just announced the first two new regulations to be released under the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). This Act was signed into law by President Obama in January of 2011

Here they are:

The first rule will give the FDA the right to embargo "suspect" food so that it can not enter the marketplace. This refers to food for which there is proof that it has been produced under unsanitary or unsafe conditions (such as incorrect pasteurization or canning, unsafe storage, lack of testing) but which may not as yet have a specific contaminant identified. I have been listing some under "Alerts". Basically, this will give the FDA up to 30 days to see what other measures should be taken (hopefully the food will not go bad in the meantime).

The other rule relates to imported foods - both for humans and animals. This rule requires that anyone importing food into the U.S. has to inform the FDA if any other country has refused entry to this same product. Yes, it happens: a product refused entry by one country, because it is found to be harmful, is then sent off to another unsuspecting one, hoping no one will find out. There have been some embarrassing situations over the years.

Personally, I think these are good regulations, which should help to make the U.S. food supply safer. What I particularly like, is that we are going further upstream in terms of prevention.

Both rules will take effect July 3, 2011.

TSF

RECENT FOOD RECALLS IN CALIFORNIA

California is a great place to live. It's not just the beauty and climate. It's also the food. California is the number one food and agricultural producer in the United States. More than half the nation's fruit, nuts, and vegetables come from here. In addition, it's the nation's number one dairy state. There are also a large number of food importers, distributors and processors based here. That can mean that our food travels less miles and arrives at our table in fresher condition than in many other parts of the U.S.

Unfortunately, all this does not mean that California has completely safe food. In fact, we come in for more than our fair share of recalls. Let's take those I have listed for the past few days. I am also noting how you can contact the company for more information (see also the alerts column and click on FDA or USDA links for additional details).

• Jennie-O Turkey Store frozen turkey burgers with possible Salmonella contamination were distributed in California as well as in Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Washington and Wisconsin. For more information, see the special website the company has created for consumers at www.jennieo.com/recall(Congratulations on taking this unusual step!).

• Seafood Salads from Frankly Fresh with possible contamination by Listeria monocytogenes were distributed through retail supermarkets in California (as well as in Nevada). For more information contact the company at we-care@franklyfresh.com or its hot line at 1-800-826-3322 Monday through Friday from 9 a.m to 5 p.m. PT.

• Angelina brand smoked round scad (imported from the Philippines) which could be contaminated with Clostridium botulinum was distributed in California through retail stores, supermarkets and wholesale distributors (as well as in Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Washington, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Texas, Maryland, Virginia, Florida and the Virgin Islands). For more information - Contact the company at 323-257-1888 Monday to Friday noon to 9 p.m. EDT.

• Sprouts sold by Louie Foods International were apparently distributed only in California in the central valley and along the CA coast. For more information call Louie Foods, International at (559) 264-2745 PT.

By the way, three of the four recalls below (all except the turkey burgers) originated in California as well. All the bacteria involved in these incidents - Clostridium, Listeria and Salmonella - can cause serious and even fatal illnesses. You can not tell by looking at these foods that they may be contaminated.

Be careful my California friends.

TSF

FOOTNOTE: I notice that a lot of blog readers are pulling up this post during a ground turkey recall in August, which also affects California. The present post only covered a few days in April. The ground turkey recall is dealt with in three posts in August 3-4.

FINGERS, BITS OF PLASTIC AND OTHER FOREIGN MATERIALS IN YOUR FOOD

Every once in a while, something keeps cropping up in the U.S. food supply called "foreign materials." It probably does in other industrialized nations as well. I haven't been listing the recalls, but maybe I should.

So what is this stuff? Well, it could be anything - bits of plastic, bits of metals, human hair, fabric. Even glass, which is the most common cause of injury. These unexpected things won't give you foodborne illness (which is why I haven't been covering them) but they could harm you in other ways. And no, they are not "foreign" as in "from another country." At least, they need not be. They can come from any food plant anywhere, and sometimes from packaging as well. Where food is partly processed locally - say, at your local meat or fish store, such materials can also enter there.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) these small non-edible items in your food can give you: esophageal laceration, esophageal perforation, fistula formation, laceration or perforation of other parts of the digestive tract (such as the pharynx, stomach, intestine), choking (blockage of the airway, with children under 3 at greatest risk), lacerations of the mouth, tongue, and of course, broken teeth and dentures (if you have them). This isn't even the end of the list. Reportedly, the most common type of complaint received by the government is injury to the mouth or throat.

And of course, there have been all those fingers or bits of fingers that have been found in food: the planted one in Wendy's chili and the apparently actual pieces of finger found in TGI's burger, in a chocolate popsicle and a ham sandwich. Accidents happen, and who knows where that bit of finger went to?

A couple of months ago, I found a piece of hard plastic in the Dungeness crabmeat I bought at my usual retailer's. Once I found (yes, true) a small rusty nail in my dessert at a local French restaurant (it recently caved in to the economy and I can't honestly say I shed any tears although they did not charge us for the meal). And a couple of years ago there was a piece of metal in my bread. The large majority of these types of incidents are not reported.

But some are. Here's a recall from today: bits of hard plastic in "Lean Cuisine Simple Favorites" frozen spaghetti and meatball entrees sold by Nestle Prepared Foods Company, Gaffney, S.C.. They are having to recall about 10,260 pounds of product. Maybe it will be recycled into dog food. Given the rubber toys, cell phones, rugs and eye glass frames that my new puppy has been consuming, it probably won't be any worse.

Another reason for chewing your food better.
TSF

CONTAMINATED TEA TO BOLOGNA TO PIG EARS

An odd mix, isn't it? But these are the latest recalls of contaminated food (and drink). Here they are.

--Tea? Yes, nice herbal teas - in fact, one I drink regularly myself. Peppermint Organic Herbal Tea, produced by Aromatics Inc., Basin City, WA, is being recalled by RemedyTeas because it may be contaminated with Salmonella bacteria (No, this is not the first case of herbal tea recall because of contamination).

--Bologna products are being recalled by Zweigle's Inc., of Rochester, N.Y., because they could be carrying Staphylococcus aureus enterotoxin, which can be fatal. The problem is apparently linked to a smokehouse failure. The bologna was recooked once the failure was discovered, but the toxin that built up in between wasn't destroyed. These Staph toxins are very hardy.

And finally - pig ears dog chews, recalled by Jones Natural Chews, because of Salmonella risk. Alright, I hope no one that reads this blog chews on pig ear treats, but we care about our dogs too, right? Particularly in America. And pig ears are about the most dangerous thing you can give to your dog. From nice healthy North American pigs? Oh no...the majority are imported. Maybe I should blog this sometime. Any requests? In the meantime, find another treat.

TSF

CONTAMINATED READY-TO-EAT FOODS

One of the consistent arguments of The Safe Food Handbook is that ready-to-eat (RTE) foods are likely to be more risky. This applies to meat products as well as non-meat RTE foods. And it's the same everywhere - not just in the United States and Canada.

Did you notice in the previous blog ("The Food Recall Myth") that almost all of the items on the 2010 6-month list of USDA recalls fell into that category (fried pork loaf, salads, appetizers, sandwiches, potstickers and so on - take a look). In fact, it was a bad year for RTE products, particularly those containing meat or based on meat.

Here's what I found for 2010 as a whole (12 months - but I included only recalls linked to possible contaminants of one kind or another - not those for mislabeling, an undeclared allergen or ingredient): 73% of the recalls by the USDA were for ready-to-eat products. This was up considerably from 2009, where the majority of such food recalls (22 compared to 19) were for uncooked fresh or frozen meat - usually ground beef products.

Why? I bet it's at least partly because we are cooking less and less and eating more and more of the "grab and go" type of foods. Alright, I perfectly sympathize with the woman who wrote in and said that after a day's work, when she was too tired to cook, it was at least a step up from fast food. Agreed. But it's a step down from a 10-15 minute, "frig to plate" fresh-cooked meal.

OK - I'm super fast, but yes, you can make a great though simple dinner for two based on fresh products in that time (complex ones naturally take longer). Of course, another way to do it is what one of my busy but health-conscious friends (who up to recently lived alone) does: she goes to the farmer's market on the weekend and then fresh cooks and freezes dinners for the weekdays ahead. OK, maybe a bit limiting, but certainly less risky.

We live in the real world. Most of us end up compromising on RTE foods, and eat them at least once in a while. But let's try to do it less often. This is a growing eating trend - but not a healthy one.

TSF

THE FOOD RECALL MYTH

I have always wondered how much of the "bad" food recalled by food companies (often under pressure from federal agencies) was actually recovered. So today I did a simple analysis of the past 6 months of the recalls conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Why look at the USDA rather than the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)? Well frankly, because I had their data handy. They helpfully just publicized their closed recall file for 2010 which listed the amount of product reported as recovered. All I did was go back to the original recall notice, and add the amount of product actually recalled in the first place. I only did it for the past 6 months, as it was the same pattern for the previous 6, and the list was getting too long (and, admittedly,the task was boring). By the way, I doubt findings for the FDA would be much different.

Notice the difference between product recalled and actually recovered in all but two cases. So where did this missing recalled food go? I would bet it didn't get lost in transit. The chances are, that we ate it. In many, if not in most cases, food recalls come too late - at least in the United States. And as you can see, too little is recovered.

Here's the list.

-- Raw Pork Paste and Ready-to-Eat Fried Pork Loaf, Dec 8, 2010. Recalled 2,182 lb. Actually recovered, 204 lbs.

-- N.Y. Gourmet Salads Products Dec 2, 2010. Recalled 12 products, (unknown total weight) . Actually recovered, 0 lbs.

-- Appetizer Products (Listeria), Nov 23, 2010. Recalled 57 lbs. Actually recovered, 566 lbs (This is very unusual).

--Spicy Thai Style Pasta Salad (Salmonella), Nov 5, 2010. Recalled, 7,325 lbs. Actually recovered, 2,012 lbs.

--Canned Meat and Poultry Products .Nov 4, 2010. Recalled, 12,086 lbs. Actually recovered, 495 lbs.

--Spicy Vegetable Potstickers .Oct 4, 2010. Recalled 1,608 lbs. Actually recovered, 420 lbs.

--Cured Uncooked Pork Ginger Sausage Sep 24, 2010. Recalled, 29, 893 lbs. Actually recovered, 5,019 lbs.

--Ground Beef Products . Aug 28, 2010. Recalled, 8,500 lbs. Actually recovered, 0 lbs.

--Marketside Grab and Go Sandwiches. Aug 23, 2010. Recalled, 380,000 lbs. Actually recovered, 168,249 lbs.

--Canned Meatball Products Aug 3, 2010. Recalled 147,667 lbs. Actually recovered, 118,892 lbs.

--Chicken Nugget Products . Jul 19, 2010. Recalled, 91,872 lbs. Actually recovered, 33,072 lbs.

--Fully Cooked Turkey Breast. Jul 7, 2010. Recalled, 17.5 lbs. Actually recovered, 17.5 lbs.

--Firehouse Jerky Beef Jerky Products Jul 6, 2010. Recalled, 8,000 lbs. Actually recovered, 2,901 lbs.

-- Beef Stroganoff with Noodles.Jun 30, 2010. Recalled, 600 lbs. Actually recovered, 0 pounds.

My point: Don't rely on food recalls to keep you safe. They won't.

Enjoy!

TSF

LISTERIA IN SALADS - A GLOBAL TREAT

Listeria monocytogenes bacteria commonly crop up in ready-to-eat (RTE) salads as well as other RTE foods. This bacterium can be present in the soil, in improperly treated organic fertilizer and in irrigation water. Animals who carry it may show no symptoms of illness.

The bacteria could also enter from packaging or plant equipment - and, in my opinion, one of the biggest risk factors - is that it is commonly carried by food industry workers. How often this happens, is difficult to say as estimates vary - let's say, somewhere between 5-20% of food workers may be carriers (that is of course, a broad range, but I bet it varies in different parts of the US.

And don't assume that this is just a US problem. It is not. For the readers of this blog in Canada, Australia, New Zealand (and my stats tell me there are quite a few of you in those countries) you have also had quite a few similar outbreaks and recalls - Listeria monocytogenes in RTE salads (as well as other foods). In fact, several occurred in 2010 in all these countries. At least one was reported in New Zealand about a week ago (Pams Fresh Express, and Living Foods Brands were involved).

And unfortunately, you can't assume organic produce is any safer. For one thing, it is handled just as much. For another, it is just as subject to environmental, animal and plant contamination. Take today's recall by State Garden, Inc. (see previous blog). One of the salad products on its recall list is Olivia's Organics. In fact, some 20 of the 90 (currently) recalled salad products bear this label. This organic line was launched with all kinds of great publicity by State Garden in March, 2006. I am quoting from the company's website at that time: "The mission of OLIVIA’S ORGANICS™ is three-fold: to encourage healthy eating by offering all-natural, organic products; to aide the local community though the work of its Foundation; and to protect the environment by endorsing earth-friendly, organic farming techniques." This sounds like a wonderful initiative - for a profit oriented company. But, unfortunately, bacteria don't discriminate - they are an equal-opportunity threat.

Listeria monocytogenes is not only a global food safety risk, but it can turn up just as much in organic as well as in conventional produce and other kinds of foods. Pregnant women - take special care (see my next blog).

TSF

RECALL OF BEEF TRIM

The USDA/FSIS which is in charge of the safety of American meat and poultry, has at least one inspector on the ball. As he/she (and I hope it is a woman)was inspecting the records of a Colorado producer of beef trim he/she found a problem. A large shipment of beef trim,labelled "for cooking only," should have been sent first to a federally approved facility for the "kill" step before it went into the food supply. But no - the company's records showed that it had been sent to the wrong place - where no such treatment of meat was done. This meant that this meat most likely entered our food system loaded with bacteria.

Why? Because beef trim is the worst, and most dangerous of beef, scraped off the skeleton of the cow, and trimmed off other cuts. It is used for making hamburger meat (no wonder hamburger meat is so risky). E.coli 0157:H7 bacteria are estimated to be present in 2-3% of US cattle (the cattle do not show signs of illness, so they are not eliminated at the slaughterhouse). These bacteria easily get into meat during the slaughtering process, in spite of precautions taken and in spite of inspectors keeping a round-the-clock eye on things.

Of course, the company's recall notice makes a point of saying that no illnesses have been linked to this recalled meat as yet. But, it is very difficult to establish links with this kind of product. Good luck finding any proof - or, recalling any of the meat, for that matter. It was produced on Dec. 2, 2010. The recall took place six weeks later. And your butcher or supermarket or some prepared hamburger manufacturer - maybe several - have used it long ago to make your hamburger meat (often it is made on the premises).

I just hoped you cooked those burgers well back there in December.

TSF

RECALLED NJ GROUND BEEF - REDUX

Even CNBC is announcing the latest ground beef recall - all of 200,000 pounds of ready-to-cook hamburgers. (By the way, I blogged this recall yesterday already). Of course - food recalls affect the health of companies as well as health of the public,so reporting recalls is quite natural for a leading business website.

But this is not really a case of exceptionally huge amounts of meat being recalled. Not in the day of mass-produced food. Nor is it that unusual a food recall. Hamburger meat and ready-to-cook frozen hamburgers are recalled all the time by different companies in the business.

But there are two interesting facts that CNBC and most other news reports are not telling you about this recall - yet. One is that this is a case of American business at its worst - that is, unethical, with no concern for public health (see yesterday's blog). The other interesting fact - and I am still checking it to make sure I have it straight - is that the OneGreat Burger Company is physically linked to the former Topps Meat Co. LLC. Topps was a nice family-owned company, which prided itself on its safety procedures. This obviously did not prevent E.coli 0157 from being found in its frozen hamburgers, resulting in their having to recall 21.7 million pounds of frozen hamburgers. (Now there's a big recall - in fact, the second largest beef recall in U.S. history). Topps was, up to that point, the largest manufacturer of frozen hamburgers in the U.S. It had been in business for 67 years, and this was its first recall.

That huge recall tipped Topps into bankrupcy back in 2008 (It already closed its plant in 2007). During the bankrupcy proceedings, an affiliate of Hawthorne-based Premio Foods, a sausage maker, then acquired the remainder of the Topps lease at its New Jersey plant, together with its flash-freezing equipment for $250,000. It set up the not-so-great One Great Burger, of Elizabeth, N.J.(The Topps name was bought by another company). Now IT is being faced with a huge recall, and not just because its burgers were smelly and spoiled - and could be contaminated. Because it broke the food safety rules.

What would be really ironic is if Premio Foods was then forced to sell off the meat plant, and the Topps former ownership bought it back at a bargain-basement price. Redux, with reversal of roles.

TSF

WHAT HAPPENS TO RECALLED FOOD PRODUCTS?

One of the great mysteries in our food supply is what food companies do with the products they so-called "voluntarily" recall (a note of sarcasm here - read: "That the FDA or USDA makes them recall."). I have heard and read all kinds of stories, and more-of-less reliable reports: it is buried, it is shipped overseas, it is used as fertilizer, it goes into animal feed (including pet food)...and it is recycled - to us.

But before I go any further, I want to say that there are some very ethical food companies that are truly concerned about their clients' welfare and make double sure that any "bad" products of theirs that have unfortunately got into the food supply, will never get in again. I am sure that the owner of the clover sprouts company that I spoke to the other day falls into this category. So do some others.

However... there are also the other kind. Their thinking seems to go more or less like this: "This recall is costing us a bundle. What we need to do is find a way to reduce the costs. Maybe we can just send these returned products back to customers and no one - including the FDA and the USDA - will be any the wiser. All we need to do is just repackage them, with a different label and/or different code, and off they go. Easy... "

Impossible? Not at all. It happens. If you read my recalls alerts about a year ago, you would have seen that a California nut distributor recycled its potentially contaminated and recalled almonds under a different (and very healthy-sounding) brand name - and, sent them right back into the marketplace. And today, well, another instance. This one was caught by U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA/FSIS), which is charged with the safety of our meat products in the United States. As a result of customer complaints about smelly and off-color meat products (note..not routine inspection) it found that One Great Burger, of Elizabeth, N.J., had repackaged and recoded their returned burgers and

sent them out for further distribution to institutional customers. Yummy....What's this about a "great burger"?

Also, you can bet that for all the cases caught, there are hundreds of others that slip through the net.

TSF
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P.S. ON FOOD RECALLS

In the years I have been following food product recalls in the US, I have learned a few things. Here are five that may surprise you:

• The recalling food company is often not the one guilty of contaminating the food being recalled. They could be an innocent victim. The contaminant could have entered from their ingredient supplier, at their packer's, or during transport. Or, they could simply be a distributor or retailer, who bought bad food products, thinking they were safe.

• You cannot assume that the product being recalled is always the right one - that is, the food that has caused an outbreak of illnesses. Mistakes happen and trace-back is not that easy. Strawberries have been recalled, when it was really raspberries that were contaminated, tomatoes recalled instead of peppers, and more. Just keep your fingers crossed.

• Many recalls start small and expand, so the safest approach is to leave a wide margin around the food that is recalled for a while. That is, if peanut products are being recalled by one company, avoid all foods containing peanut products for a while to allow the FDA to do more testing. If certain alfalfa sprouts are being recalled, avoid eating any for a while until you hear more, as the problem could be in the seeds distributed to many growers. If three cheeses made by a cheese maker are being recalled, avoid the other five they make until the FDA does more testing in case the problem is contaminated equipment or something else they all share. And so on.

• Many recalls are a case of "too little too late." It is not unusual for the "Best-by" date to have expired by the time the recall is announced. That is, we have already eaten the food. So think back on what you ate - not just what is still sitting in your refrigerator or cupboard. Of course, this is even more important if you are ill.

• Many recalls go on for a long time, sometimes in a type of start, stop and start-up again pattern, as more testing is done (see the Alert column on this blog for a 6 mos. recall by Fresh Express, and remember the peanut product and pistachio recalls that went on even longer). So don't assume it will be over in a day or so. We have a complicated food system.

TSF

FOOD RECALLS 101

Friends have been asking me to explain food recalls. So here are the basics on how they operate in the United States. But keep in mind that the actual situation is much more complex - and may be changing under the new food safety laws.

Why do food recalls take place? Because a food product that is contaminated, adulterated or mislabeled has got into our food supply, and needs to be quickly removed before it causes harm.

Who does the recalling? Recalls are almost always done by the food company responsible for releasing the product. They have to pay the costs of getting the products back, and suffer the negative publicity, damage to their brand and liability threats.

What does government do? At present, government can request, but not order a company to recall a dangerous food product (except in the case of infant formulas and foods which are "vectors of communicable diseases"). And yes, it can lean on the company pretty heavily at times, even to the point where it eventually forces the company to do the recall, or, go out of business. The two federal agencies involved are the Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration, depending which food product is involved. How they deal with the culprit company varies to some extent.

How voluntary are recalls? The game that is played - and the language often used in recall notifications - is that the recall is "voluntary" or even "precautionary, voluntary." Sometimes even words such as "out of excess of caution" are used. But let's face it - what company wants a recall?

What should consumers do if they hear of a recall? Yes, "if" is more correct than "when" - since many people don't hear about food recalls, and many food products that are recalled don't even reach the FDA or USDA public alert system. What consumers should do is to : 1) check whether these products have been sold in their state and their area stores; 2) check whether they have bought and/or eaten any recently; 3) avoid purchasing any until the "all clear" is issued. On the last point: don't assume that your stores always quickly remove recalled foods from their shelves , or have a checkout block that stops you buying them. Some slip up, or just don't hear about the bad news (usually smaller stores). All said and done, you have to take care of yourself.

TSF

SAFE FOOD HANDBOOK - Update

The Safe Food Handbook
Heli Perrett (Author)
January, 2011

Trade Paperback • 368 Pages
ISBN 9781615190171

 Now Available at (partial list):
Online Booksellers: Amazon.com, A1Books.com, Barbes & Noble.com, Books-a-Million.com, BordersStores.com, Buy.com, ecookbooks.com, Hastings.com, IndieBound.org., Powells.com, Target.com, WalMart.com and several others.
Local US booksellers: Barnes and Noble, Books-A-Million, Borders, Book Passage, Chapters, Cole, Indigo, Hastings, Indiebound, Target, Walmart
Local Canadian Booksellers: Chapters, Coles, Indigo
International Online Orders: Amazon.uk (England), Amazon.ca and Chapters.Indigo.ca (Canada), Amazon.fr (France), Amazon.de (Germany), Amazon.co.jp (Japan), Amazon.ca (Canada), ebay.com.au (Australia), Fishpond.co. nz (New Zealand), loot.co.za (Zambia).
Domestic and International offline orders: For bulk purchases - The Perseus Books Group
Customer Service Department, 1094 Flex Drive, Jackson, TN 38301

 Upcoming Bookstore Events in January, 2011:
• At the Green Arcade, 1680 Market St, San Francisco, California - January 12, 7.00pm
• At Book Passage, The Ferry Building, San Francisco, California - 01/19/2011 6:00 pm
• On KRON-4 TV News - Interviewed by Henry Tenenbaum on Sunday, Jan. 15, 9-10am.
• On KQED Public Radio Forum - Interviewed Friday, Jan. 28, 10-11am.




 Reviews and News:
LIBRARY JOURNAL, Dec. 2010, BOOK REVIEW - "VERDICT -
Perrett writes in a manner that clears the fog of claims surrounding food risks and safety. This book will be an eye-opener for anyone who has had questions about food safety.
—Ginny Wolter, Toledo-Lucas Cty. P.L."

USA WEEKEND MAGAZINE - Nov.21, 2010: ”They save time, but pre-washed, pre-cut, ready-to-go packages of fruits and veggies can be problematic. “Proportionally more outbreaks of produce-linked illness come from fresh-cut produce than from produce left whole,” says Heli Perrett, author of The Safe Food Handbook. Some studies found that slicing before packaging can multiply the risk by six or more."

RUTH WINTER, Award winning science writer, author of 28 books: “The overburdened, understaffed agencies that are supposed to inspect and eliminate contaminated food in the United States cannot do an adequate job since most of our edibles are imported. The best protection against unsafe food, therefore, is our own knowledge. Dr. Perrett presents well-balanced, solid information about foods we may choose to eat. She answers many frequently asked questions about pre-packaged food, organic products, and what precautions to take with dishes such as sushi and raw beef. She even answers questions readers may not think to ask such as how to avoid distasteful, contaminated spices.”
—Ruth Winter, MS, author of A Consumer’s Dictionary of Food Additives.

TSF
(Signing out with exhaustion)