October 12, 2007

ConAgra under investigation for salmonella in poultry

US food giant ConAgra is being investigated by the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) after some of its frozen poultry products were found to be linked to cases of salmonella.

The company on Tuesday (October 9, 2007) ceased operations at its Missouri plant after the reported illnesses were brought to its attention by the USDA FSIS.

ConAgra said it believes the issue is likely linked to consumers undercooking the not-ready-to-eat frozen products in question - Banquet Turkey and Chicken Pot Pies. 

The company has advised consumers not to eat these products while investigations are underway.

FSIS said these products were considered the potential source of reported illnesses caused by salmonella based on epidemiological evidence from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and State public health departments.
 
FSIS was notified on October 5 that a pot pie product was identified as the potential source of contamination. Three days later, FSIS dispatched investigators to Congra's plant where these frozen pot pie products were produced.

The products are sold under generic store brands, including brands for Wal-Mart, Meijer and HEB.
 

ConAgra earlier this year issued a recall of its peanut butter after the product was linked to sickness that affected more than 400 people in the US. Costs of the recall were estimated at US$60 million.

FSIS earlier this year announced several changes to the agency's salmonella testing programme, including faster reporting of results to detect problems more rapidly. The FSIS is also considering increased sampling at

problematic plants.

Meanwhile, a Minnesota family has filed a lawsuit against ConAgra, alleging that the company's pot pies sickened their baby daughter.

The family's salmonella strain is the same one linked to the broader salmonellosis outbreak, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said has resulted in 152 cases in 31 states.