Latest news with #TaylorFreshFoods
Newsweek
09-05-2025
- Health
- Newsweek
Trader Joe's Food Recalled in 18 States as FDA Sets Highest Warning Level
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A company product sold by Trader Joe's, the Sesame Miso Salad with Salmon, has been recalled affecting 18 states after some packages were found to possibly contain an undeclared allergen, which the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) classified as a Class I recall, the most serious designation. Newsweek has contacted Taylor Fresh Foods, the product's manufacturing company, via email for comment. Why It Matters The FDA's Class I classification highlights the risk to individuals with milk allergies, who could experience severe or life-threatening reactions if they consume the salad. While only a small number of packages were affected, the salads were distributed across a significant proportion of the country, increasing the potential exposure to vulnerable consumers. According to the FDA, milk is one of the nine major food allergens that must be declared on packaging under federal labeling laws. The others are eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans and sesame. A photo of the affected product in the Trader Joe's recall. A photo of the affected product in the Trader Joe's recall. Trader Joe's What To Know The recall was initiated by Taylor Fresh Foods, the manufacturer based in Illinois, on April 26, and the FDA released its classification on May 8. A Class I recall determines the recall a "situation in which there is a reasonable probability that the use of or exposure to a violative product will cause serious adverse health consequences or death." The recall involves 10.25-ounce packages of the Sesame Miso Salad with Salmon, labeled with use-by dates of April 28 and 29. The issue arose when about 500 units were mistakenly packaged with a sealed topping packet of Parmesan cheese crumbles instead of the intended crispy onions, according to the Taylor Fresh Foods announcement shared by the FDA. The affected product was sold in stores in Alabama, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee and Wisconsin, as shown on the map below. Taylor Fresh Foods said the error was discovered during a quality assurance check. The company said in its press release: "The topping packet may potentially contain an undeclared milk allergen. The product may contain milk that is not declared on the label." No illnesses have been reported as of the recall's publication, but consumers with milk allergies have been urged to discard the product or return it to the store for a refund. Taylor Fresh Foods said in its announcement that this recall does not affect any other products or brands. What People Are Saying Clinton Mathias, an associate professor in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Connecticut, previously told Newsweek: "Cow's milk allergy is the most common allergy affecting infants and children in the U.S. It is estimated that about 0.5-3 percent of children under the age of 3 have experienced allergy to milk proteins. While most children, between 40 and 57 percent, outgrow allergy to milk by school age, it is still among the most common food allergies in adults, with about 1.9 percent of adults reporting allergies to milk. "Symptoms of allergy to cow's milk can vary from person to person, with some people experiencing mild symptoms such as hives and others exhibiting severe reactions such as anaphylaxis. Other symptoms of milk allergy can include vomiting, diarrhea, rectal bleed, lethargy, etc." What Happens Next As of May 8, the recall remains in effect. Consumers who have purchased the salad and are concerned about milk allergies are advised to either discard the product or return it to Trader Joe's for a full refund. For further information, customers may call (855) 455-0098 Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. PST.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
California produce supplier is sued, accused of causing E. coli outbreak unreported by FDA
Salinas-based produce supplier Taylor Fresh Foods is facing lawsuits from nine victims of a November E. coli outbreak that was not disclosed to the public. The outbreak — which killed one person and sickened at least 88 more — was linked to romaine lettuce and spanned at least 15 states, including Missouri and Indiana. Federal investigators traced the cases back to a single grower, but the Food and the Drug Administration didn't disclose the name. Read more: E. coli hammers a California town, sending patients to ER and shutting down restaurants The details of the investigation came to light only after several affected parties, including the parents of a 10-year-old victim earlier this month, filed lawsuits alleging Taylor Fresh Foods and Taylor Farms California — referred to as "Taylor Farms" in court documents — originated the "defective and unreasonably dangerous" food products that caused the E. coli outbreak. Taylor Farms in a Thursday statement to The Times denied that it was the source of the E. coli outbreak and said it is "considering all legal action to defend itself." "We perform extensive raw and finished product testing on all our product and there was no evidence of contamination," the supplier said, adding that its produce is processed using USDA-verified wash systems. Read more: There are now 90 victims in McDonald's E. coli outbreak; lawsuits begin to roll in In a federal lawsuit against Taylor Fresh Foods and Taylor Farms California filed last week, Indiana residents Amber and Chris George alleged that their then 9-year-old son Colton George became severely ill and was hospitalized after eating romaine lettuce allegedly supplied by the California producer. He was later diagnosed with hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a life-threatening kidney condition, from an E. coli strain that was confirmed by genetic testing to match other cases in the outbreak. The boy's condition forced him to undergo dialysis for two weeks — including on his 10th birthday, the complaint said. The Georges demanded that Taylor Farms pay their son's medical bills among other damages, including for "loss of enjoyment of life" and "emotional distress." Read more: A wave of major listeria recalls shows food safety will 'never be perfect' Taylor Farms' products were previously linked to a separate E. coli outbreak in October. The supplier voluntarily recalled the onion products at fault, and the FDA cautioned the public about the contaminated yellow onions, which were being served on McDonald's hamburgers. This time, the FDA said "there were no public communications related to this outbreak" because the contaminated lettuce was no longer being sold when its distributor was identified, according to an internal report obtained by NBC. The FDA also said in a statement to NBC that it names firms only "when there is enough evidence linking an outbreak to a firm and there is actionable advice for consumers, as long as naming the firm is not legally prohibited." "By the time investigators had confirmed the likely source, the outbreak had already ended and there was no actionable advice for consumers," the agency said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wrote in a letter the previous month that the outbreak was over. Representatives for the FDA and CDC did not respond to requests for comment. Read more: As FDA probes source of national E. coli outbreak, California firm recalls onion products Bill Marler, the attorney representing the nine victims suing Taylor Farms, said he uncovered extensive evidence pointing to the supplier as the source of the outbreak. Marler said he obtained invoices from a St. Louis caterer listing Taylor Farms as its seller. "The whole thing could be very much cleared up if the FDA did what they normally do, which is name the entity when they have it nailed down to an entity, which they do," Marler said. Read more: Avocados, salmon, strawberry yogurt: Which of these meets FDA's new definition of a "healthy" food? Marler said he was particularly disturbed by the FDA's decision not to publicize this outbreak or its source because the specific strain of E. coli that caused it — E. coli O157:H7 — has been linked to several prior outbreaks. "That tells you that there's some sort of systemic problem in the growing environment," the attorney said. "If you kind of ignore it and say, 'Oh well, the outbreak is over, we don't have to say anything,'" he said, "what incentive is there for companies to stop growing there?" Jerold Mande, an adjunct professor of nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and a former senior advisor to the FDA commissioner, said that even if a contaminated product is out of circulation by the time its source is identified, consumers still have a right to know the contamination occurred. "A company's record in the past is indicative of what people might expect in the future as well, and so consumers should have that information," Mande said, adding that what they do with that information is up to them. Mande said that the FDA has not historically excelled at transparency, and he is concerned that recent cuts to the agency's communications staff will make matters worse. "The current administration, which has emphasized over and over again about radical transparency, should certainly be doing more to let consumers know what's going on in these cases," he said. Darin Detwiler, a food safety expert and associate teaching professor at Northeastern University's College of Professional Studies, said that it's crucial for not only consumers but also other companies to know when any contamination occurs. Under the Food Safety Modernization Act, food facilities are required to have food safety plans outlining how they will combat any contamination risks or other food safety hazards. Detwiler said these plans typically include likelihood-severity models, which measure the likelihood of a hazard occurring with the severity of its potential consequences. "If a company is supposed to be putting together a likelihood-severity plan, and they don't know that their competitors — their commodity, their industry — is having these problems, how are they supposed to adequately capture this idea of likelihood and severity and then act upon it?" Detwiler said. Sign up for our Wide Shot newsletter to get the latest entertainment business news, analysis and insights. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
24-04-2025
- Health
- Los Angeles Times
California produce supplier is sued, accused of causing E. coli outbreak unreported by FDA
Salinas-based produce supplier Taylor Fresh Foods is facing lawsuits from nine victims of a November E. coli outbreak that was not disclosed to the public. The outbreak — which killed one person and sickened at least 88 more — was linked to romaine lettuce and spanned at least 15 states, including Missouri and Indiana. Federal investigators traced the cases back to a single grower, but the Food and the Drug Administration didn't disclose the name. The details of the investigation came to light only after several affected parties, including the parents of a 10-year-old victim earlier this month, filed lawsuits alleging Taylor Fresh Foods and Taylor Farms California — referred to as 'Taylor Farms' in court documents — originated the 'defective and unreasonably dangerous' food products that caused the E. coli outbreak. Taylor Farms in a Thursday statement to The Times denied that it was the source of the E. coli outbreak and said it is 'considering all legal action to defend itself.' 'We perform extensive raw and finished product testing on all our product and there was no evidence of contamination,' the supplier said, adding that its produce is processed using USDA-verified wash systems. In a federal lawsuit against Taylor Fresh Foods and Taylor Farms California filed last week, Indiana residents Amber and Chris George alleged that their then 9-year-old son Colton George became severely ill and was hospitalized after eating romaine lettuce allegedly supplied by the California producer. He was later diagnosed with hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a life-threatening kidney condition, from an E. coli strain that was confirmed by genetic testing to match other cases in the outbreak. The boy's condition forced him to undergo dialysis for two weeks — including on his 10th birthday, the complaint said. The Georges demanded that Taylor Farms pay their son's medical bills among other damages, including for 'loss of enjoyment of life' and 'emotional distress.' Taylor Farms' products were previously linked to a separate E. coli outbreak in October. The supplier voluntarily recalled the onion products at fault, and the FDA cautioned the public about the contaminated yellow onions, which were being served on McDonald's hamburgers. This time, the FDA said 'there were no public communications related to this outbreak' because the contaminated lettuce was no longer being sold when its distributor was identified, according to an internal report obtained by NBC. The FDA also said in a statement to NBC that it names firms only 'when there is enough evidence linking an outbreak to a firm and there is actionable advice for consumers, as long as naming the firm is not legally prohibited.' 'By the time investigators had confirmed the likely source, the outbreak had already ended and there was no actionable advice for consumers,' the agency said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wrote in a letter the previous month that the outbreak was over. Representatives for the FDA and CDC did not respond to requests for comment. Bill Marler, the attorney representing the nine victims suing Taylor Farms, said he uncovered extensive evidence pointing to the supplier as the source of the outbreak. Marler said he obtained invoices from a St. Louis caterer listing Taylor Farms as its seller. 'The whole thing could be very much cleared up if the FDA did what they normally do, which is name the entity when they have it nailed down to an entity, which they do,' Marler said. Marler said he was particularly disturbed by the FDA's decision not to publicize this outbreak or its source because the specific strain of E. coli that caused it — E. coli O157:H7 — has been linked to several prior outbreaks. 'That tells you that there's some sort of systemic problem in the growing environment,' the attorney said. 'If you kind of ignore it and say, 'Oh well, the outbreak is over, we don't have to say anything,'' he said, 'what incentive is there for companies to stop growing there?' Jerold Mande, an adjunct professor of nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and a former senior advisor to the FDA commissioner, said that even if a contaminated product is out of circulation by the time its source is identified, consumers still have a right to know the contamination occurred. 'A company's record in the past is indicative of what people might expect in the future as well, and so consumers should have that information,' Mande said, adding that what they do with that information is up to them. Mande said that the FDA has not historically excelled at transparency, and he is concerned that recent cuts to the agency's communications staff will make matters worse. 'The current administration, which has emphasized over and over again about radical transparency, should certainly be doing more to let consumers know what's going on in these cases,' he said. Darin Detwiler, a food safety expert and associate teaching professor at Northeastern University's College of Professional Studies, said that it's crucial for not only consumers but also other companies to know when any contamination occurs. Under the Food Safety Modernization Act, food facilities are required to have food safety plans outlining how they will combat any contamination risks or other food safety hazards. Detwiler said these plans typically include likelihood-severity models, which measure the likelihood of a hazard occurring with the severity of its potential consequences. 'If a company is supposed to be putting together a likelihood-severity plan, and they don't know that their competitors — their commodity, their industry — is having these problems, how are they supposed to adequately capture this idea of likelihood and severity and then act upon it?' Detwiler said.
