Peanut Butter Recall and Salmonella Outbreak
Pritzker | Olsen is being contacted by hundreds of people who have been sickened after eating Great Value and Peter Pan peanut butter. The FDA has warned consumers that jars of Great Value and Peter Pan peanut butter whose product code begins with 2111 may be contaminated with Salmonella. ConAgra has recalled the affected peanut butter, and the CDC and FDA have confirmed a Salmonella outbreak linked to the peanut butter after over 280 people in 39 states became ill. Pritzker | Ruohonen is preparing to file lawsuits on behalf of victims of this outbreak. Read information about Great Value and Peter Pan peanut butter lawsuits. To contact Pritzker | Ruohonen for a free consultation, please call toll-free at 1-888-377-8900 or submit the firm's online consultation form.
FDA Warns Consumers Not to Eat Certain Jars of Peter Pan Peanut Butter and Great Value Peanut Butter: Product May be Contaminated With Salmonella
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers not to eat certain jars of Peter Pan peanut butter or Great Value peanut butter due to risk of contamination with Salmonella Tennessee (a bacterium that causes foodborne illness). The affected jars of Peter Pan and Great Value peanut butter have a product code located on the lid of the jar that begins with the number "2111." Both the Peter Pan and Great Value brands are manufactured in a single facility in Georgia by ConAgra. Great Value peanut butter made by other manufacturers is not affected.
If consumers have any of this Peter Pan or Great Value brand peanut butter in their home that has been purchased since May 2006, they should discard it. [NOTE FROM PRITZKER | RUOHONEN - IF BECAME ILL AFTER EATING THE PEANUT BUTTER, DO NOT THROW AWAY THE JAR OR RETURN IT TO THE STORE WHERE YOU BOUGHT IT. IT IS EVIDENCE. ]
Symptoms of foodborne illness caused by Salmonella include fever, diarrhea and abdominal cramps. In persons with poor underlying health or weakened immune systems, Salmonella can invade the bloodstream and cause life-threatening infections. Individuals who have recently eaten Peter Pan and Great Value brand peanut butter beginning with product code 2111 and have experienced any of these symptoms should contact their doctor or health care provider immediately. [NOTE FROM PRITZKER | RUOHONEN - IF YOU ARE EXPERIENCING SALMONELLA SYMPTOMS, YOU NEED TO GO TO A DOCTOR AND HAVE YOUR STOOLS TESTED FOR SALMONELLA.] Any such illnesses should be reported to state or local health authorities.
FDA's warning is based on a just-completed epidemiological study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the states and local health agencies, which links 288 cases of foodborne illness in 39 states to consumption of varying types of Peter Pan peanut butter. This report was provided to FDA on February 13.
The outbreak appears to be ongoing and the first consumer may have become ill in August 2006. The cause of foodborne illnesses can be difficult to identify. As a result of extensive epidemiological testing and recent case control studies, CDC was recently able to identify Peter Pan peanut butter as the likely cause of illness. Great Value brand peanut butter beginning with product code 2111 is manufactured in the same plant as Peter Pan peanut butter and, thus, is believed to be at similar risk of contamination.
ConAgra is recalling all Peter Pan and Great Value peanut butter beginning with product code 2111 that already was distributed. The company also is destroying all affected products in their possession. The company will cease production until the exact cause of contamination can be identified and eliminated. To assist in this endeavor, FDA has sent investigators to ConAgra's processing plant in Sylvester, Georgia where the products are made to review records, collect product samples and conduct tests for Salmonella Tennessee.
