UK cumin recall due to nut content: linked to US recalls???

[eragon]

http://www.food.gov.uk/news-updates/news/2015/13511/bart-ground-cumin-recalled

[nameless]

I'm going to guess...yes...it's related

[guess]

In the larger sense perhaps related to the previous adulterated almond flour that was approximately 50% peanut by volume.  Is bulking with cheaper fill products like peanuts or their hulls, or other nut hulls becoming a practice?  Before I make that last leap I'd need to know more about the testing procedures and results. 

It could be the same supplier, the same batch, could have been unintentional contact at the point of origin producer, or the exporter. There are many independent variables that would need to have a value.

[CMdeux]

^ that.

There are really just two options here, and nuanced decision trees underneath each.

1.  Single adulteration, albeit a MASSIVE one in terms of scope-- which is rippling through the entire chain of manufacturing.

2.  Becoming a commonplace thing, and adulteration is being done with profit motive..... frequently....

[Macabre]

Oh--sorry. This whole thing is awful. 

[maeve]

^ that.


2.  Becoming a commonplace thing, and adulteration is being done with profit motive..... frequently....

This is one of my biggest fears. Particularly now that the recalls are also including paprika.

[ajasfolks2]

Bump as possibly related

[spacecanada]

It has reached Canada now too!

A recall has been added to the CFIA's Food Recall Report.

Class: 2
Reason for Recall: Allergen - Almond
Product(s): Bart brand Ground Cumin
Recalling Firm: Dovetail Collections 
Distribution: Alberta, Ontario

Product details are available at: http://www.inspection.gc.ca/about-the-cfia/newsroom/food-recall-warnings/complete-listing/2015-02-13-r9641/eng/1424102607210/1424102887114

Common food allergens - http://www.inspection.gc.ca/food_allergies
Email Notification Subscription Self-Service - http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/util/listserv/listserve.shtml

[guess]

FDA recommends avoiding all cumin.  OK, FDA.  How?  It's not covered under FALCPA.

http://www.fda.gov/Food/RecallsOutbreaksEmergencies/SafetyAlertsAdvisories/ucm434274.htm#recalledproducts

[Macabre]

Where is that danged like button.  It's not covered under FALCPA.

[Macabre]

I want to post this under the Big Recall thread for the US, too. 

I'm posting the full text--in thh most easy to read format. 



http://allergicliving.com/2015/02/14/inside-the-peanut-tainted-cumin-recalls-what-happened/


Inside the Peanut-Tainted Cumin Recalls: What Happened?

By: Patrick Bennett

February 18, 2015 – As the widespread series of recalls of cumin products containing undeclared peanut continues across the United States, Allergic Living reached out to regulators and researchers to learn how this massive problem occurred, and how consumers with allergies can be protected.

We can also report that the FDA has heard a dozen reports of allergic reactions related to the recalls, although the severity of them is not clear.

To start with the question of how so many spice and meat products – the total is now 580,000 pounds of beef, pork and chicken – came to contain peanut, the ultimate source and the means of contamination is still being determined. But there is some investigative progress.

Allergic Living is able to confirm that there were two sets of cumin products recalls: one for peanut and almond starting in fall 2014, and a second larger one for peanut only, starting in December 2014. Both were traced back to two separate Turkish suppliers, but so far there is no evidence the situations were related.

However, investigators say this doesn't necessarily mean the contamination happened in Turkey, or that cumin from other countries is safe – it's possible that these suppliers imported their cumin from another country, such as India, and the contamination could have happened there.

"The spice chain is long and complex. It can be very difficult to trace back further than one or two levels," says Steve Taylor, co-founder of the Food Allergy Research and Resource Program at the University of Nebraska, who is deeply involved with the issue. "That's why it's not prudent yet to say 'these suppliers were all from Turkey, therefore it's all their fault' – they might have been innocent victims, too."

Taylor notes that the first round of recalls was triggered by a random test by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency of a taco seasoning product, and that recall occurred on both sides of the border. The second and far larger series began when a company called Reily Foods discovered the cumin used in a chili seasoning kit contained peanut and almond. Reily staff notified the supplier, an American company whose name is not being divulged.

"But the American company that purchased this second batch of cumin from the second  [Turkish] supplier and sold it to Reily Foods, also sold the same batch of cumin to 38 different companies," says Taylor. "That's when this thing started to mushroom." (So far, this second recall series appears specific to the USA.)

"A lot of what happened from late December until now is all related to these 38 customers of this one supplier," Taylor adds, noting that he believes Adams Flavors, Foods and Ingredients, the first company to issue a peanut-only recall in December 2014, was one of these customers.

In turn, Adams Flavors had its own customers further down the supply chain. "It gets complicated in a hurry," says Taylor. The large number of companies involved explains why so many different types of foods are affected, including spice mixes, chili kits and also hundreds of thousands of pounds of seasoned beef, pork and poultry products.

Further complicating matters is the fact that the Reily Foods recall was actually for both peanut and almond, just like that first set of fall recalls, while the related recalls that followed were for peanut only. It's unclear why this is, but at some point the focus shifted to peanut, even though it's possible almond was in some of these products as well, because of the link to the supplier of Reily Foods. To Taylor's knowledge, none of the products from this second set of recalls have been tested for almond.

Given this situation, Allergic Living recommends that almond-allergic individuals would be wise to avoid the recalled products as well, at least until more information emerges. So far no other tree nuts have been implicated.

Meanwhile, the FDA has told Allergic Living that it has received at least 12 consumer complaints of allergic reactions to recalled cumin products. However, the circumstances and severity of the reactions were not revealed. Both the FDA and the USDA, which regulates meat products, are closely monitoring the situation and admit there may be more recalls coming.

The tainted spice issue has also spread to Europe. In the U.K., one cumin brand (Bart Ground Cumin*), two fajita kits and a taco seasoning have recently been recalled for undeclared almond, but not peanut. The U.K. Food Standards Agency says the spice being implicated in the last three products appears to be paprika, which was sourced from Santa Maria, a big Scandinavian-owned spice producer. On February 17, Santa Maria pulled back more than 20 seasoning blends across Europe due to paprika that tested positive for almond.

Professor Chris Elliott, who led a British inquiry into fraud in the horse-meat industry, is suggesting that the spice contamination on both sides of the Atlantic may actually be intentional. In an article in The Independent newspaper, Elliott says he is "highly suspicious" that a dreadful cumin harvest in India is causing some producers to substitute or dilute their cumin with peanut or almond shells. Elliott, the director of Queen's University's Institute for Global Food Safety, believes this is affecting the global supply of cumin – although he has not yet expressed an opinion on the paprika contamination.

Any intentional nuts-for-spice tampering would be a huge concern for those allergic to peanuts or almonds, but Taylor cautions that this is pure speculation. He says there is no evidence at this point to suggest that any intentional adulteration has occurred. "We don't know the root cause. There is rampant speculation and several theories," says Taylor.

And in the The Independent article, a representative of the U.K. Food Standards Agency concurs, saying, "it's "too early to say whether the substitution was deliberate or accidental." Allergic Living will continue to monitor any developments in the U.S. and European spice cases.

One slight reassurance about the cumin situation is that the spice isn't typically used in very large amounts in cooking. "Cumin is pretty potent stuff," says Taylor. "It's used at 1 or 2 percent at the most in food products. And often far less than that. So you'd have to have a lot of peanut in the cumin in order for there to be sufficient carryover to provoke reactions in peanut-allergic individuals."

The recalls have been something of a wake-up call for the spice industry, where Taylor says companies did not tend to think regular allergen testing was necessary. "The situation has now changed and widespread testing is being conducted," he says.



http://allergicliving.com/2015/02/14/inside-the-peanut-tainted-cumin-recalls-what-happened/2/

[guess]

It's like reading an Onion article.  Sorry, had to post the text just had to.   

FDA Consumer Advice on Products Containing Ground Cumin with Undeclared Peanuts Key AdviceThe FDA is advising people who are highly allergic to peanuts to consider avoiding products that contain ground cumin or cumin powder, because some shipments of these products have tested positive for undeclared peanut protein. People who are highly allergic or sensitive to peanuts may be at risk of a serious or life-threatening allergic reaction. Ground cumin may be sold as a spice, in a spice mix or kit, or as a minor ingredient when used in finished food products like soups and chilies. Most finished products are expected to have low amounts of ground cumin, and therefore low amounts of peanut protein. Products made before 2014 are unlikely to contain the affected ground cumin.
View a list of Recalled Products.

Who Should Know Consumers with severe peanut allergies and those preparing food for people with peanut allergies. What to Do Consumers with severe peanut allergies and their caregivers should:

   
• Review the list of recalled products and avoid these foods. They include ground cumin, seasoning mixes, and a variety of cooking "kits" which include "Tex-Mex" and Indian dishes.
• When choosing a food, review the ingredients panel. Products, such as soups or chilies that contain only small amounts of the affected ground cumin may not contain enough peanut protein to trigger a reaction in most peanut-allergic people. However, people who are highly sensitive to peanuts may consider avoiding products that list "cumin."
• Realize that if the ingredients panel lists "spices," it may or may not contain ground cumin.  People who are highly sensitive to peanuts may want to call the manufacturer to find out if the product contains cumin powder.
• Realize that if symptoms of an allergic reaction, such as shortness of breath, swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, or hives, occur, stop eating the product and seek immediate medical care or advice.
• Realize that if an allergic reaction occurs, you can contact your local FDA consumer complaint coordinator. To find yours, visit: http://www.fda.gov/Safety/ReportaProblem/ConsumerComplaintCoordinators/default.htm.

Yes.  Realize that you should stop eating the product and seek advice if you're swollen and can't breath.   

Make sure you review the ingredient panel for something that probably isn't listed so you can't read what's not there.   

Any time you read "spice" call the oh so cooperative manufacturer to see if there is an ingredient they don't have to disclose.   

Dear Allergic Community, please don't eat.  At all.