recall

Widespread Recalls Due to Undeclared Peanuts in Thousands of Pounds of Food Products

If you haven’t heard there have been hundreds of recalls due to undeclared peanut proteins in cumin, paprika, and spice mixes resulting in hundreds of recalls of thousands of pounds of frozen and prepared foods. These spice related recalls will have far reaching implications for years to come since spices are shelf stable for many years and many of the peanut tainted products might be in the pantries and freezers of our friends and family members as well as schools and restaurants. It is unknown at this time how many people have become seriously ill due to undeclared peanut in spices but until then, this situation begs the question, “How do you protect yourself and your loved ones?”

How to Stay Informed!

I strongly urge you to subscribe to the FDA’s recall email list so that you can keep up to date about recalls and keep you and your loved ones safe. Many of the food allergy organizations such as FARE and FAACT are great about sharing updates about allergy related recalls but you may also choose to receive information about safety recalls due to salmonella and listeria outbreaks.

When I opened today’s email, I found an invaluable resource, the FDA’s photo album of recalled products. Bookmark Recalled Products 2015 (an album on Flickr) AND Recalled Products 2014 (an album on Flickr) You can quickly scan through food items that are recalled and click on photos of foods you might have in your pantry to check to see if the recall applies to your concerns. Bookmark the Flicker link or this article on your phone and computer for quick reference and share with your friends and family members.

The USDA also lists meat related recalls on their website, see the recall tab (third). (Thanks Kelly Morgan for sharing!)

I don’t use a lot of cumin in my dishes as it’s not a common spice in Asian foods, however we do travel and we do eat out. This series of recalls will require extra vigilance and awareness to keep our loved ones with a peanut allergy safe. What are some of your strategies? Share in the comments to help others.

Many thanks to Jaelithe Judy for connecting the dots about the magnitude of the cumin recalls.

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3 Comments

  1. Just to confirm that this is widespread and not all info out on impact, an acquaintance dined with her peanut allergic daughter at a Middle Eastern restaurant in Vancouver BC and had a reaction. They did not know about the cumin recall; cumin is widely used in Middle Eastern cuisine! Thanks for spreading the word!

    1. Thank you for sharing Kelly. I hope your friend’s daughter is fine now, so scary. I hope that the FDA and other government investigators can get to the bottom of this situation. Until then, all we can do is be vigilant, spread the word, and always carry epinephrine.