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| HEALTH WATCH - PRODUCT RECALL
Telephone: 973-266-5429
Please review the following message from Alan Talarsky, Environmental Scientist 1, Food and Drug Safety Program, DHSS regarding the following Class 1 Recalls issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 1. Sara Lee North American Retail, a St. Joseph, Mo., establishment, is recalling approximately 1,728 pounds of cheese frank products because they were inadvertently packaged with beef frank labels and therefore contained undeclared allergens, milk and cheese. Milk, a known potential allergen, is not declared on the label. The following product is subject to recall: * 1-pound packages of "Ball Park BRAND BEEF FRANKS." Each package bears the use by date of "May 07 09 P8740A" as well as a UPC code of "5450010002." A photo of this product is attached above for your reference. The cheese frank products were produced on Feb. 12, 2009, and were shipped to retail establishments nationwide intended for use by consumers. The problem was discovered by the company after receiving consumer inquiries. FSIS has received no reports of illness due to consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about an illness should contact a physician. Media with questions about the recall should contact company Director of Communications Sara Matheu at (630) 598-8722. Consumers with questions about the recall should contact the Sara Lee Consumer Affairs Recall Hotline at (888) 891-6100. *****************************************************************************************
2. Back to Nature Foods Company announced today a voluntary recall in the United States of its Nantucket Blend trail mix containing pistachio nuts that may have the potential to be contaminated with the Salmonella organism. This possible contamination is not connected with the recent outbreak associated with peanuts or peanut butter. The following products are being recalled and consumers should not eat them: * Back to Nature Nantucket Blend trail mix, 28 oz. bag, UPC code 59283-00020 and a "best by" date between 08 20 09 and 12 12 09. * Back to Nature Nantucket Blend trail mix, 10 oz. bag, UPC code 59283-31039 and a "best by" date between 11 04 09 and 12 12 09. A sample photo of these products is attached above for your reference. Consumers can find the "best by" date on the back of the package and should discard any product they have. Consumers can contact the company at 1-866-538-8280 with any questions. There have been no cases of Salmonellosis reported to date in connection with these products and the company is issuing this recall as a precaution. These products were distributed to retail stores nationwide. Salmonella can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis. No action is required of local health departments at this time for either of these recalls. If any requests for assistance are received from either the USDA or FDA, the Food and Drug Safety Program will contact you. For additional information regarding warnings and recalls, please click on the weblink below. ***************************************************************************************** Please review the following message from Alan Talarsky, Environmental Scientist 1, Food and Drug Safety Program, DHSS regarding the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Class 1 recalls of various pistachios and pistachio-containing foods due to their association with the Setton Pistachio Company, whose products had tested positive for several strains of Salmonella. Many brands have been recalled, including widely-distributed brands such as Planters, Fishers, and Frito Lay. The complete list of products, updated regularly, can be accessed at the following webpage: http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/pistachiorecall/index.cfm#Pistachio FDA is advising consumers not to eat any brand of shelled or unshelled pistachios, or any food products containing pistachios, such as baked goods, trail mix, and other snack foods, until FDA determines which pistachios and pistachio products are affected by the recall being conducted by Setton Pistachio of Terra Bella, Inc. ("Setton"), also called Setton Farms. The FDA consumer alert is available at this link: http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2009/NEW01982.html Consumers should store pistachios and pistachio products in their homes, away from children, until it can be determined whether the products are affected by the recall. Products that are not recalled do not need to be thrown away. At this time, neither the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention nor state health departments have reported any consumer illnesses directly connected with Setton pistachios. FDA, in cooperation with the states and CDC, is increasing public health surveillance for any illnesses that may be directly associated with pistachios from Setton. FDA has received several consumer complaints of illness after eating pistachio products, and the agency is investigating these reports to determine if any of them are associated with pistachios from Setton. At this time, FDSP is recommending that local health department officials, during the course of routine inspections, verify that the recalled products are not remaining on retail food establishments' shelves or offered in foodservice operations for consumption. If any developments or requests for assistance from FDA or CDC are received, FDSP will notify you. ***************************************************************************************** For all recalls - http://www.recalls.gov/recent.html This information has been distributed to: DHSS Senior Staff; DHSS Staff; LINCS Coordinator Backups; LINCS Coordinators; LINCS Epidemiologists; LINCS Health Educators; LINCS Health Officer Assistants; LINCS Health Officers; LINCS Health Planners; LINCS IT Specialists; LINCS Partnership Coordinators; LINCS Public Health Nurses; LINCS Regional Health Planners; LINCS Team Members; LOCAL Health Officers; LOCAL Public Health; Food Safety Organizations Further distribution of this message should be directed to: n/a IMPORTANT NOTE: Please do not use reply feature of your email system. If you have questions about the content of this email or any of its attachments, please call your County/City LINCS agency for assistance. LINCS agencies are instructed to contact the individual listed in message above or on the attachment for questions concerning content. **
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