Food Safety Outbreak: Peanut Butter
Though most of the 1,800 food manufacturers whose products contained salmonella-tainted Peanut Corporation of America (PCA) peanut butter complied with the USDA’s recall recommendation, Westco Fruit and Nuts Inc. of New Jersey decided to defy the recall, which was voluntary, as always.
Westco’s owner insisted its products were safe, but hid when FDA inspectors came to his plant.
The FDA had no authority to enforce its recall recommendation, but it did have the power to seize products. Days after the PCA recall was announced, the FDA seized trail mix from Westco Fruit and Nuts’ warehouses.
Nothing could be done, however, to call back product that had already been shipped to stores and sold to customers.
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Sources
Hartman, B. 2009. Nut Seller Fights FDA on Peanut Recall. ABC News. March 23, accessed July 29, 2010.
Peanut Products Recall. FDA website.
