Expect rise in food recalls – Plainview Milk – Kroger – consumer confidence drops

July 1, 7:20 AMMidland Food ExaminerMary Ann Lien

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(AP Photo/Al Behrman)

Food recalls undermine consumer confidence in safety revealed in IBM survey

Kroger Company, June 30, 2009, announced the recall of three seasoning blends: Kroger Popcorn Seasoning Movie Theater Butter Flavored, Kroger Popcorn Seasoning White Cheddar Flavored, and Kroger Fat Free Butter Flavored Sprinkles. Kroger was informed by one of their suppliers of a possible Salmonella contamination of an ingredient. Kroger is one of the nation’s largest grocery chains, with 2,476 supermarkets and multi-department stores in 31 states under two dozen local banners including Kroger, Ralphs, Fred Meyer, Food 4 Less, Fry’s, King Soopers, Smith’s, Dillons, QFC and City Market and Foods Co.

The company has announced that the following stores did not receive any of the affected seasonings: Ralphs, Smith’s, Fred Meyer, QFC, Fry’s, King Soopers, City Market, and Foods Co.

Consumers who purchased the products are warned not to consume them and to return them to their retailer. See Kroger Recalls Three Seasonings Due to Possible Health Risk for more information.

This comes on the heels of the June 28, 2009 announcement of yet another far-reaching food recall and investigation, and may be the first of many to come.

Sunday, June 28, 2009, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced:

Plainview Milk Products Cooperative, Plainview, Minn., is voluntarily recalling instant nonfat dried milk, whey protein, fruit stabilizers, and gums (thickening agents) that it has manufactured over the past two years, because they might be contaminated with Salmonella. The company sells these products to other industry customers, including distributors and manufacturers, who may have incorporated them into their own products. None of Plainview’s products were sold directly to the public.

Plainview has stopped production of these products and has notified its customers of the recall. Currently, the Plainview recall is limited to industry customers who received suspect product.

This is an ongoing investigation, and the FDA will update the public as new information emerges. At this time, the FDA is not aware of products being recalled at the consumer level. FDA News Release, June 28, 2009

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It cannot be predicted at this time what effect this recall will have on the consumer as the Plainview Milk Products Cooperative products are marketed to manufacturers for use in consumer products. However the items listed above are common ingredients in many processed foods and the recall is for all products sold in the past two years. Updates will be forthcoming.

This is one more example of escalating recalls and potential threats to consumer safety in the food industry. The most recent IBM consumer survey of 1000 people composed of 100 people in ten major US cities reveals the growing lack of confidence in the safety of food products and producers ability to protect the public. The IBM press release issued June 24, 2009 reveals the following:

• The number of people who trust food companies to produce food that is safe and healthy has dropped to less than 20 percent.
• 83 percent could name at least one product that has been recalled in the past two years because of safety concerns.
• 63 percent said they would not purchase a product until the source of contamination had been discovered and eliminated.
• 49 percent claimed they would be less likely to ever again purchase a product that had been recalled because of a safety issue.

In addition, more than sixty percent of respondents claimed to have changed their shopping habits over the past several years because of concerns about the quality and safety of available food. Over three quarters of the surveyed also expressed desire for increased information concerning the origin of products, ingredients, and how they are produced. The complete findings are available in the IBM report.