Food Recalls

Food recalls, commonly ignored by less cautious citizens, can save lives if promptly followed. Although a lot of the food sold in grocery stores in the U.S. is safe to eat, food recalls do happen, usually because of possibly infection by dangerous bacteria.

The early 2009 peanut butter recall was one example of a large scale food recall. Peanut butter and many foods sold that contain peanuts or peanut butter were recalled, including such favorites as Keebler Peanut Butter Sandwich Crackers and a variety of Famous Amos cookies. While most peanut butter sold in stores was safe, several peanut or peanut butter containing foods were contaminated with a strain of salmonella that led to the deaths of at least six people. Infants and the elderly are most likely to die due to the bacteria, but anyone who experiences salmonella poisoning will be in severe pain at the very least.

Another 2009 culprit that may contain salmonella is raw alfalfa sprouts. There have been 31 reported cases of people experiencing sickness due to the consumption of alfalfa sprouts according to a government health report in April of 2009. Another unfortunate recall victim in 2009 are pistachios. Food recalls like these can be at the very least mildly annoying, especially when they concern popular menu items at restaurants. Customer complaints are bound to happen, but the restaurants are helpless to do anything about it.

Some ascribe the increasing amount of food recalls to the large worldwide population and the necessity to produce food for it. To curb this trend, many are calling for more demanding inspections of food processing facilities.

For more information on current food recalls visit the FDA.