Personal Injury Law

Food Safety: Malt-O-Meal Recalls Puffed Rice and Puffed Wheat Cereals

Malt-O-Meal has recalled two of its cereal products because of potential contamination with Salmonella.  Full details for the recalled items are detailed on the company website.  

As summarized by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Salmonella is a bacteria that infects individuals who come in contact with infected food products, food handlers, or pets.   Most persons infected with the Salmonella bacteria usually recover completely, although elderly, infants and individuals with weakened immune systems are prone to more serious and longer term health problems.

Following is the recall announcement by Malt-O-Meal, reproduced in its entirety for our readers:

"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- Minneapolis, MN -- April 5, 2008 -- 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. A comprehensive listing of impacted products can be found at www.malt-o-meal.com/recallinfo.

No illnesses have been reported to date in connection with this situation. All other Malt-O-Meal products are unaffected by this action and are safe for continued sale and consumption. The products affected by this recall represent less than one-half of one percent of the company's annual production of ready-to-eat cereal.
http://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/maltomeal04_08.html"

For information about this and other food safety recalls, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website includes a search-able database, press releases and other valuable information information regarding consumer safety.   FoodSafety.gov also provides links to many other agencies with alerts relating to food recalls, water safety concerns, disease control and prevention, and health warnings.

Full post as published by DC Metro Area Personal Injury Law Blog on April 08, 2008 (boomark / email).