Spinach recall

From the story by John Chadwell of the The Packer:

Metz Fresh, King City, Calif., notified the Food and Drug Administration and the California Department of Public Health on Aug. 28 that it has voluntarily recalled bagged spinach after it was determined there was a positive test for salmonella.This is the first instance of a positive finding for a pathogen on a product produced by a signatory of the California Leafy Green Products Handler Marketing Agreement, which was established after the Sept. 14 E. coli outbreak linked to fresh spinach.Greg Larson, spokesman for Metz Fresh, said Aug. 29 the recall was for 8,118 cases of spinach that were distributed under the Metz Fresh label to retail outlets and the foodservice sector throughout the U.S. and Canada.

From the FDA news release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- Salinas, CA -- August 28, 2007 -- Metz Fresh, LLC is voluntarily recalling bagged spinach as a result of a positive test for Salmonella found during routine company testing.
The spinach is distributed under the label Metz Fresh, in both retail and food service packages. These include 10 and 16 oz bags as well as 4-2.5 lb. and 4 lb. cartons. The only Metz Fresh product affected is spinach that bears the tracking codes 12208114, 12208214 and 12208314. It was distributed in the continental United States and Canada.
There have been no reports of illness or problems related to this spinach.
Salmonella is a common food borne pathogen that can cause severe illnesses, including fever, abdominal cramps and diarrhea. While most individuals recover in three to five days without medical intervention, the infection can be life-threatening to young children, the elderly and those with compromised immune systems. Consumers with any of these symptoms should call their physician.
Consumers are advised to discard this product or return it to the place of purchase for a refund. Consumers with questions about the recall should contact 831-386-1018.
"Nothing is more important to Metz Fresh than the safety of our consumers, period," said Andrew Cumming, President of Metz Fresh. "As soon as we learned of the presumptive positive test, we directed all customers to hold all boxes of the spinach affected as a precaution. Now, with this positive test confirmation, there is no question that we would recall and destroy all spinach bearing these three codes."
The positive test came during independent lab testing Metz Fresh conducts on all of its products. Through its labeling and numbering system, Metz Fresh has already tracked, located and put 'holds' on the vast majority of the cartons of spinach affected. That spinach will not be released into the marketplace.
While the positive test came from only one sample of many on three packing lines, Metz Fresh has, as a precaution, chosen to recall all of the spinach from the ‘field lot’ packed that day on all three lines.
Metz Fresh is keeping appropriate authorities updated on the status of the voluntary recall


TK: Thankfully no illnesses linked to this recall, which may be reassuring to consumers that testing protocols are in place. Here is coverage from the AP, Foodconsumer.org, Fox.