ATLANTA -- Several food manufacturers have instituted voluntary recalls over the past two weeks of products that are unrelated at first glance. So why are these recalls happening all at once? The answer is in a key ingredient.
The initial recall is tied to whey powder over concerns regarding salmonella contamination. Whey powder is used in the production of foods to modify texture or thicken and gel. As an ingredient, it is regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
So far, there has been no indication of anyone getting sick as a result of the products involved in each of the recalls.
These recalls include:
- July 20 - Flowers Foods of Thomasville, Ga., recalled Captain John Derst's Old Fashioned Bread, several brands of Swiss rolls and dessert cake for possible Salmonella contamination late last week. The bread was sold in stores in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina. The Swiss rolls were sold nationwide under the brand names Mrs. Freshley's, Food Lion, H-E-B, Baker's Treat, Market Square and Great Value.
- July 20 - Some Ritz Cracker products, including Ritz Cracker Sandwiches and Ritz Bits were recalled by Mondelez Global for possible Salmonella contamination.
- July 23 - Pepperidge Farm issued a recall for four types of Goldfish crackers distributed nationwide. The crackers recalled include Flavor Blasted Xtra Cheddar, Flavor Blasted Sour Cream & Onion, Goldfish Baked with Whole Grain Xtra Cheddar and Goldfish Mix Xtra Cheddar + Pretzel. As with the other items recalled, whey powder is one of the ingredients in a seasoning in these items.
- July 24 - Pinnacle Foods has recalled its 15.25-ounce packages of Hungry Man Chipotle BBQ Sauced Boneless Chicken Wyngz frozen microwave dinners with a best buy date of 9/6/19. The recalled meals have an establishment number of "EST. P138" or "P-138" on the package. They were shipped to retailers in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Virginia. And just as with the other products recalled, whey powder is used in the ranch dressing that is used as a seasoning in the mashed potatoes and in the boneless chicken with the meals.
The whey powder was initially recalled by its producer, Associated Milk Products, Inc. Food producers whose products use the whey powder during production are among those being recalled.
The Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention points out that no sicknesses have been reported as a result of these concerns and that the food producers are recalling the products out of an overabundance of caution.
The CDC said even though the communicated about more multi-state outbreaks than usual this year, current data does not suggest foodborne illnesses or outbreaks are increasing. FoodNet data shows fairly stable numbers of foodborne illnesses over the last few years, with some rates increasing and some decreasing.
The majority of outbreaks are investigated by state health departments; CDC is involved in outbreaks that span multiple states. Officials said The number of outbreaks reported to the CDC by state and local health departments has remained fairly stable over the last few years.
11Alive checked with some of the school districts in the area to see if the recall affected them. DeKalb, and Cobb said it did not. Also, Gwinnett officials said the district does not buy those products. However, they did said there could be a variation in their vending machines, but that would be something the individual school would have decided, but it's not likely.
