For: Immediate Release
Date: January 12, 2009
Contact: Martin Kanan,
President and CEO,
King Nut Companies
(440) 248-8484 ext. 244
Subject: Statement to the Media and Our Customers Clarifying the King Nut Peanut Butter Recall
January 12, 2009
On Saturday, January 10, we issued a recall of our peanut butter distributed to food service companies under the King Nut label.
We issued the recall after learning that salmonella had been discovered in an open container of peanut butter with our label. We also made it clear that we do not manufacture King Nut peanut butter nor do we supply any ingredients for the peanut butter. We are simply the distributors.
Since that time, we have been working closely with the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control to help them trace the cause of this contamination. This takes time, but we are cooperating fully with their investigation.
Today, the Minnesota Department of Health suggested that King Nut peanut butter is linked to illnesses nationwide. We only distribute in seven states and therefore King Nut peanut butter could not possibly be the source of a nationwide outbreak of salmonella. (King Nut peanut butter is distributed to food service companies in Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan, North Dakota, Arizona, Idaho and New Hampshire.)
Questions about the manufacture of the peanut butter and nationwide distribution should be directed to Peanut Corporation of America.
We thought it was very important for the public to understand this. We are doing everything we can to get our King Nut peanut butter out of distribution because our first priority is the health and safety of those who use our products. But we can only recall the product that was distributed under our label, and clearly that does not extend nationwide.
Martin Kanan
President and Chief Executive Officer
King Nut Companies
Solon, Ohio
King Nut does not actually manufacture peanut butter. We also do not supply ingredients for the peanut butter we distribute. Peanut butter distributed under the King Nut label is manufactured by Peanut Corporation of America. Before we distribute their products, we require certification that the product has been tested and is safe. The test includes screening for salmonella.