October 15, 2007

 

ConAgra expands pie recall

 

 

ConAgra Foods Inc. recalled all its Banquet pot pies and store brand varieties Thursday (October 11,2007) after the products were linked to nationwide salmonella outbreak in the US.

 

The company included beef pot pies in the recall after issuing a consumer warning on its chicken and turkey pot pies. 

 

ConAgra spokeswoman Stephanie Childs said the decision to recall the pies was a precautionary measure.

 

The company wants to make sure there is no confusion, she explained. Although the company has found no indication of a link between cases of salmonella and the beef pot pies, it wanted to be careful as it collects information, she said.

 

ConAgra's have been linked to at least 165 cases of salmonella in 31 states. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said at least 30 people have been hospitalized as part of the ongoing outbreak, but so far no deaths have been linked to the pot pies.

 

ConAgra is offering refunds for all the pies.

 

The store brand versions are sold under the names of Albertson's, Hill Country Fare, Food Lion, Great Value (sold at Wal-Mart stores), Kirkwood, Kroger, Meijer and Western Family.

 

The company is revising the cooking directions on its pot pie packages to clarify how long the pies should be cooked in different microwaves.

 

ConAgra shut down the pot pie production line at its Marshall, Mo., plant, but the rest of the plant, which employs about 650 people, has continued operating.

 

A family in Minnesota sued ConAgra Foods Inc. for selling the pot pies they believe made their young daughter ill with salmonella. The federal suit seeks damages of more than US$75,000 and reimbursement for medical costs.

 

Salmonella outbreaks recently caused one of the largest recalls in US history. An estimated 21 million pounds of hamburger patties from New Jersey-based Topps Co was recalled. The huge costs of the recall forced the closure of the company, which has been operating more than 60 years.