By Mark Huffman
ConsumerAffairs.com
July 7, 2009
Another small food ingredient recall isn't so small anymore, with more and more related products being pulled from shelves over concern they may be contaminated.
The Food and Drug Administration says no illnesses have been reported from the recalled products, which may be contaminated with salmonella bacteria.
The source of the problem is believed to be dry milk sold by a Minnesota milk cooperative. Among the latest products to be caught up in the recall are Malt-O-Meals "Maple & Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal" and "Maple & Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal" packets sold in "Variety" cartons, with carton date codes between June 30, 2009 and October 28, 2010. The products were made with instant non-fat dry milk manufactured by the Plainview Milk Products Cooperative.
CPI Foods, Inc of Dallas is recalling approximately 15,000 (net wt. 20g) packets of non fat dry milk because they have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella. Non Fat Dry Milk packets are components of CPI Foods shelf stable meal kits distributed to various community service companies in Texas, Oklahoma, Arizona, West Virginia, North Carolina, Nevada, and Kentucky.
These community service companies deliver CPI Foods shelf stable meal kits to consumers in their homes. The meal kits are packaged in small white boxes that have no identifying information and contain single-serve food items. Distribution of affected kits began in May 1, 2009.
The Kroger Co. has recalled Kroger Popcorn Seasoning Movie Theater Butter Flavored, Kroger Popcorn Seasoning White Cheddar Flavored, and Kroger Fat Free Butter Flavored Sprinkles sold in some of its retail stores they may contain the tainted milk.
Stores the company operates under the following names did not receive any of the seasonings being recalled: Ralphs, Smiths, Fred Meyer, QFC, Frys, King Soopers, City Market, and Foods Co.
Kroger is recalling the following items:
Kroger Popcorn Seasoning Movie Theater Butter Flavored sold in 2.82-ounce jars with a sell-by date of JUN 08 10 under the following UPC code: 011110 72445.
Kroger Popcorn Seasoning White Cheddar Flavored sold in 2.82-ounce jars with a sell-by date of JUN 09 10 under the following UPC code: 011110 72444. These two seasonings were sold in Kroger stores in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia and Virginia;
Dillons and Gerbes stores in Kansas and Missouri; Baker's stores in Nebraska; and Food 4 Less, Hilander, Jay C, Owen's, Pay Less and Scott's stores in Illinois and Indiana.
Kroger Fat Free Butter Flavored Sprinkles sold in 2-ounce jars with sell-by dates of JUN 08 10 and JUN 09 10 under the following UPC code: 011110 66853. This seasoning was sold in Kroger stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.
Customers who have purchased the above products should not consume them and should return them to a store for a full refund or replacement. Northeast grocery chain Giant Food has recalled Giant Nonfat Dried Milk, 9.6 ounce size, UPC 6-8826707833 Code FEB 0511S, because it too is suspected of containing the tainted ingredients.
Precision Foods Inc., of St. Louis, Missouri, is recalling certain Madagascar Vanilla cocoa as a precaution given that the potential exists that the product may be contaminated with Salmonella. It too received non-fat dry milk from Plainview.
USDA inspectors first detected salmonella in a milkshake powder in June. Further investigation traced it back to the Plainview Milk Products Cooperative. As the recall spreads, it will likely become the third major recall of 2009. Previously, tainted peanuts and tainted pistachios caused a number of illnesses and deaths and forced recall of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of products.
