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Feds: Peanut Corporation Knew of Salmonella Problem

Company allegedly shipped its peanut butter knowing it could be contaminated

By Lisa Wade McCormick
ConsumerAffairs.com

January 28, 2009

• Complete List of Recalled Products --- • Texas Fines Peanut Plant $14.6 Million For Violations • Lawmakers Chastise Food Executives Over Salmonella Outbreak • Source of Salmonella Contamination in Peanut Butter May Be Found • More Pet Foods Added to Salmonella Recall • Peanut Recall Expanded To "All Ingredients" • Peanut Corporation of America Files for Bankruptcy • PCA Shuts Second Peanut Plant In Salmonella Scare • Peanut Butter Recall Claims Still More Products • Ice Cream, Cookies, Donuts Join the Massive Peanut Butter Recall List • Peanut Recall Expands as Feds Release Findings • Congresswoman Demands Peanut Probe • Feds: Peanut Corporation Knew of Salmonella Problem • Dozens More Peanut Butter Products Recalled • NutriSystem Joins Peanut Butter Recall • Peanut Butter Dog Treats Recalled Due to Salmonella • Peanut Butter Health Bars Recalled • Peanut Butter Recall List Grows • Peanut Butter Recall Spreads To More Products • Kellogg Puts Peanut Butter Crackers "On Hold" Due to Salmonella Concerns • Peanut Butter Recalled Due to Possible Salmonella Contamination • King Nut Issues Peanut Butter Recall • Consumer Complaints about Peanut Butter --- Earlier stories • Judge Nixes Peanut Butter Class Action • FDA Failed to Follow Up on 2004 Peanut Butter Contamination • Peter Pan Returning To Store Shelves • Consumers Still Getting Sick From Tainted Peanut Butter • Fourth Peanut Butter Death Reported • Peanut Butter Recall Extended to Products Made as Early as 2004 • Peanut Butter Scare Stirs Congress • Consumers Left Holding the Peanut Butter Jar • Earlier Peanut Butter Contamination Kept Quiet • Peanut Butter Developed as a Health Food • Third Death Blamed on Peanut Butter • Peanut Butter Recalls Spread to Ice Cream & Desserts • FDA Says Peanut Butter Salmonella Outbreak Is "Ongoing" • Salmonella Confirmed in Peanut Butter • Second Death Linked To Tainted Peanut Butter • Death Linked To Tainted Peanut Butter • ConAgra Recalls Tainted Peanut Butter as Complaints Mount • FDA Widens Peanut Butter Warning • Reports of Peanut Butter-Borne Illness Increase • FDA Warns of Salmonella in Peanut Butter --- • Consumer Complaints about Peanut Butter --- • Salmonella: What It Is • More about Food Safety ...

The company at the heart of the nationwide salmonella outbreak -- Peanut Corporation of America (PCA) -- shipped peanut butter it knew was contaminated 12 times in the past two years, federal officials say.

The news comes as food manufacturers nationwide continue to pull crackers, health bars, pet treats, and other products off store shelves because they contain potentially salmonella-tainted peanut butter or paste made at PCA's Georgia facility.

PCA's products are not sold directly to consumers, but they are used as ingredients to make cookies, crackers, pet treats, energy bars, ice cream, and other products.

Food makers have already removed hundreds of items from store shelves in the wake of this salmonella outbreak -- and the list continues to grow.

The outbreak is blamed for the illnesses of more than 500 people in 43 states and may be linked to the deaths of eight others.

Salmonella is an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and those with weakened immune systems. Symptoms include fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. In rare cases, it can cause more severe illnesses, including arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis, and arthritis.

Federal officials on Tuesday confirmed that internal tests by PCA found salmonella in its products 12 times during 2007 and 2008, but the company still shipped the items.

In some cases, officials said, PCA had a different laboratory analyze the products -- and those tests came back negative for salmonella.

The Washington Post said health officials did not know about the problem because companies are not required to disclose internal tests to the Food and Drug Administration or state officials.

PCA, however, may still have violated federal law, an FDA official told the newspaper.

"Foods are supposed to be produced under conditions that do not render them damaging to health," said Stephen Sundlof, director of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, according to the Post. He declined to say if the company could face criminal charges.

Federal officials on Tuesday also said they found four strains of salmonella at PCA's Georgia plant, including one in a sample taken from the floor near a bathroom, newspaper reported.

The only strain of salmonella linked to the current outbreak is Typhimurium.

"There is a salmonella problem at the plant," Robert Tauxe, deputy director of the CDC's division of food-borne, bacterial and mycotic diseases, told the Post.

FDA officials said they still do not know how PCA's plant was contaminated with salmonella -- or how the organism got into the peanuts.

Salmonella is carried by animal feces. Foods can also become contaminated if infected handlers do not wash their hands with soap after using the bathroom.

The bacteria usually thrive in a wet environment, like meats and eggs. But food experts discovered that salmonella can survive in a dormant state in peanut butter -- and reproduce when ingested by humans -- after the 2007 outbreak at a ConAgra facility that makes Peter Pan peanut butter.

State inspection reports of PCA's Georgia plant reveal a history of unsanitary conditions, according to the Post report. Inspectors flagged those problems, but said they were not required to do follow-up inspections. The newspaper found no indication that state officials had shut down the plant or penalized the company.

FDA officials have never inspected PCA's plant, the newspaper reported. Instead, the agency relied on Georgia's Department of Agriculture. FDA officials say the agency does not have enough inspectors to check the 65,520 food production facilities nationwide. FDA officials inspected 5,930 plants in 2008.

The last time state officials inspected PCA's Georgia plant was in October, according to the Associated Press. That is the same time the contaminated products were being produced. Inspectors, however, did not test the factory or the peanut products for salmonella.

"We do pull product samples from time to time, but we can only run 4,500 samples in a year, and we have 16,000 food-processing and food-sales stores in the state," Oscar Garrison, Georgia's assistant agriculture commissioner for consumer protection, told the Post.

The FDA is reviewing the state's inspection process, but said Georgia officials may not have found any salmonella contamination even if they'd tested some of the products.

"All inspections are a snapshot in time; they only reveal what is happening at the firm at that particular time," Michael Rogers, director of field investigations at the FDA, said.

Consumers Union, however, said the government could do a much better job protecting the public and preventing outbreaks like this.

"The average plant is inspected once every 10 years," Jean Halloran, director of food safety for Consumers Union, said. "This one was getting inspected a couple of times a year by Georgia, but neither they nor the FDA were taking enough enforcement action."

In the meantime, PCA said it is cooperating with the FDA in this investigation. "We have shared with them every record that they have asked for that is in our possession and we will continue to do so," the company said in a statement released on Tuesday.

PCA has also halted production at its Georgia plant.

More recalls

Meanwhile, the list of products recalled in the wake of this outbreak keeps growing.

Here are the latest products recalled because they contain potentially-tainted peanut butter or paste made by PCA:

Healthy-hide Deli-wrap 3-Pack 5" Peanut Butter-Filled Rawhide dog treats made by Salix.

The company sold the products at PetSmart, Target, and Wegman's Food stores in the United States and Canada. The products come in a clear plastic bag with a header card and the name Deli Wraps on the front. The package is a 3-count of 5" chew treats with the UPC of 0-91093-33354-0. All packages are marked with one of the following lot codes: A 08 208, A 08 212, A 08 232, A 08 234, A 08 263, A 08 264, A 08 268, A 08 275, A 08 276 or A 08 277. This code can be found on the back of the header card. Salmonella can be transferred to people handling pet treats, especially if they don't thoroughly wash their hands after handling the products or any surfaces exposed to the products.

Pets with salmonella may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting. Some pets may have decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Well animals can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. Pets that have any of these symptoms should see a veterinarian. Salix has not received any reports of illnesses linked to these products. Consumers can return the recalled items for a full refund. For more information, can contact PetSmart at 1-888-839-9638; Target: at 1-800-440-0680, or Wegmans: 1-800-934-WEGMANS ext. 4760.

Several varieties of Carolina Prime Pet dog treats.

The recalled products, which were sold in the U.S. and Canada, are: 6" Beef Shank Peanut Butter, UPC 063725542007; 2pk Hooves Peanut Butter, UPC 063725542000, 4" Rawhide Bone Peanut Butter, UPC 063725542003, 6" Rawhide Bone Peanut Butter, UPC 063725542005, and 6" Healthy Hide Beef Shank Peanut Butter, UPC 09109333479. All the recalled products come in single unit packages with lot date codes between 081508 and 010909. The company has not received any reports of illnesses linked to these products. Consumers can return the dog treats for a full refund. For more information, contact Carolina Prime Pet at 1-888-370-2360;

Jenny's Cuisine Anytime Peanut Butter Flavor Nutritional Bars by Jenny Craig.

The recalled products were distributed directly to consumers in the United States and Canada through Jenny Craig centres or the at-home Jenny Craig Direct program. The recalled items have the following BEST BEFORE DATES: MAY1209ALO, MAY1209BLO, MAY2409BLO, MAY2509BLO, MAY2509ALO, MAY2609ALO, and MAY2609BLO. They also have a UPC Code of 655447009347. Jenny Craig has removed these products from its inventory. Customers can return the bars for a replacement or "an adjustment" on their next order. For more information, contact Jenny Craig at 1-800-JennyCare.

Certain Sure-Pak 12 meals from SOPAKCO, Inc., of Mullins, South Carolina.

The recalled meals were sold by SOPAKCO to distributors and customers nationwide and in several foreign countries. Some of the meals were sold at stores specializing in emergency preparedness and camping gear and rations. The recall covers all meals with the following lot numbers: 8261, 8278, 8285, 8287, 8294, 8320, 8322, 8330, 8350, 8357, 8358, 9003, and 9012. The company has not received any reports of illnesses linked to these products. Customers who have these recalled items will be contacted by a SOPAKCO representative. Consumers contact the company at 423-278-1437 for more information about this action.

ALDI Cambridge cheese crackers with peanut butter and Grandessa Peanut Butter Cookies.

Some of the recalled cheese crackers were made by Kellogg's. Both ALDI and Kellogg's are recalling these crackers. The recalled crackers made by Kellogg's have a net weight of 7.44 oz (210 grams) on the package. The recalled crackers made by a second manufacturer ALDI used have a net weight of 7 1/3 oz (208 grams) on the package. Consumers can return any of these recalled items for a full refund. For more information, contact ALDI at 630-761-2740.

Chocolate Dipped Honey Peanut IsaLean bars from Isagenix International LLC.

The bars were sold by independent distributors across the county. The recalled products have the UPC 602410 and lot numbers 11390108, 11390208, 12390308 and 12390808. The company has not received any reports of illnesses linked to these bars. For more information, contact the company at 877-877-8111.

The company has not received any reports of illnesses linked to these products. For more information about this recall, consumers can contact the company 510-567-1200.

Meanwhile, the makers of Skippy, Peter Pan and Jif say their products are safe and not included in any salmonella-related recall.

The FDA now has a complete list of all the products recalled in the salmonella outbreak on its Web site. Consumers can check that list to see if their favorite products are included in any recalls.

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