Personal Injury Law

Salmonella Strikes Malt-O-Meal Cereal Product Again

By Bill Marler, Esq.

According to a company press release, Malt-O-Meal announced today that it is voluntarily recalling its unsweetened Puffed Rice and unsweetened Puffed Wheat Cereals produced with “Best If Used By” codes between April 8, 2008 (coded as “APR0808”) and March 18, 2009 (coded as “MAR1809”) because they may have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella.  The recalled product was distributed nationally, marketed under the Malt-O-Meal brand and as some private label brands including Acme, America’s Choice, Food Club, Giant, Hannaford, Jewel, Laura Lynn, Pathmark, Shaw’s, ShopRite, Tops and Weis Quality.

In 1998, Malt-O-Meal  recalled as much as 3 million pounds of its plain toasted oat cereal after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that it was the likely source of Salmonella food poisoning.  At least 17 Washington state children became ill with Salmonella infections, and litigation resulted.

Founded in 1919, the Malt-O-Meal Company is privately held and headquartered in the IDS Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Malt-O-Meal, the Nation’s fourth largest ready-to-eat cereal manufacturer, supplies a full line of branded cereals and private label cereals to the grocery industry.  The company currently produces 30 different branded ready-to-eat cereals, three varieties of Malt-O-Meal Hot Wheat cereal, and a full line of oatmeal products.  The company currently operates five production facilities and four distribution centers around the U.S.

Full post as published by Marler Blog on April 06, 2008 (boomark / email).