The American Peanut Council continues to work with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to investigate which products may be affected by a manufacturer's recall due to salmonella contamination. It advises consumers that at this time, there is no indication that any jars of peanut butter sold in retail stores are linked to the recall by Georgia-based Peanut Corporation of America (PCA).
While none of this product was sold at retail to the general public, some of the peanut butter and peanut paste manufactured by PCA is used as ingredients in other products. Some of the peanut butter is also distributed in bulk for further manufacturing into products containing peanut butter and to large US institutions.
On Saturday January 17, the America Peanut Council joined the FDA in urging consumers to postpone eating products that use US peanut butter as an ingredient, pending information about which products are supplied by a PCA plant in Blakely, Georgia, USA. The plant does not manufacture or supply any retail peanut butter brands. Consumers should visit http://www.fda.gov for a list of affected products. As the FDA has directed, consumers should also go to company and brand websites for further information about any specific products. Detailed information about PCA's recall can be found at http://www.peanutcorp.com.
Consumers want information about which products are affected, and that's why we want to reassure Europeans that the FDA's advisory does not apply to retail peanut butter brands on grocery shelves, said Louise McKerchar, European Director of the American Peanut Council's London office.
The FDA has traced one source of salmonella contamination to a PCA plant in Blakely, Georgia, where the company manufactures peanut butter and peanut paste. While the PCA plant does not manufacture or supply any retail peanut butter brands, they have announced a voluntary recall of all possibly affected peanut butter and paste produced at the plant.
As the FDA has directed, consumers should also go to company and brand websites for further information about any specific products.
