Posted on 08/06/2007 6:55:01 PM PDT by NRA2BFree
Warning is second nationwide in last 30 days
Product Marketed Under a Variety of Brand Names
The affected Lakeside cut green beans are sold nationwide under the following labels: Albertson's, Happy Harvest, Best Choice, Food Club, Bogopa, Valu Time, Hill Country Fare, HEB, Laura Lynn, Kroger, No Name, North Pride, Shop N Save, Shoppers Valu, Schnucks, Cub Foods, Dierbergs, Flavorite, IGA, Best Choice and Thrifty Maid.
U. S. health officials are warning consumers not to eat certain brands of French Cut Green Beans in 14.5 ounce cans manufactured by Lakeside Foods Inc, of Manitowoc, Wisconsin because the product may not have been processed adequately to eliminate the potential for botulism toxin. This warning is not related to another recent warning for botulism.
The canned green beans may cause botulism if consumed. FDA is providing this warning to make consumers aware of the possible risk of serious illness from eating these products. As of August 1, 2007, FDA had not received reports of illnesses related to the product.
The botulism toxin is very potent, and botulism is a life-threatening illness. Symptoms of botulism can begin from six hours to two weeks after eating food that contains the toxin. The symptoms may include double vision, blurred vision, drooping eyelids, slurred speech, difficulty swallowing, dry mouth, and muscle weakness that moves progressively down the body, affecting the shoulders first then descending to the upper arms, lower arms, thighs, and calves. Botulism also may cause paralysis of the breathing muscles, which can result in death unless assistance with breathing (mechanical ventilation) is provided. Individuals who show these symptoms and who may have recently eaten the product should seek immediate medical attention.
The specific codes (top line of can code) involved are: EAA5247, EAA5257, EAA5267, EAA5277, EAB5247, EAB5257, ECA5207, ECA5217, ECA5227, ECA5297, ECB5207, ECB5217, ECB5227, ECB5307.
Consumers who have any of these products or any foods made with these products should dispose of them immediately. If the code on an affected can is missing or unreadable, consumers should throw the product out.
Lakeside Foods has informed FDA that it is voluntarily recalling all of the potentially contaminated products.
Lakeside Foods recommends that consumers with any questions or concerns about the recall should call the company at 800-466-3834 ext. 4090.
The occasional defect/error in the canning process is not unheard of, impossible, or even negligent. Considering the amount of canned goods produced in this country I think generally it is a remarkably safe product.
This has nothing to do with “cheap imports”.
Thanks Bill for the explanation. I feel better...one of our favorites...and easy when using a frozen 1 lb. bag of green beans...a little diced red pepper; a small onion; garlic salt and sauteed in real butter. Yummy!
That's a good question, and not dumb at all. Unfortunately, I don't know the answer. You might want to call the number they gave and ask them. If they don't know, call your local health department. If they can't tell you, they can probably tell you who to call.
That's a great idea. Hopefully, the alphabet stations will put the warning out.
In order to grow, Clostridium bacteria require that there be no oxygen. That’s the reason canned foods and deep puncture wounds are susceptible. The species includes tetani, botulinum, difficile, perfringins, ect... C. difficile grows in the intestines after the normal flora and fauna, that normally keep it from growing, are killed by antibiotics.
Where did you find that information? I didn’t see it in the linked article.
I've got a large pressure canner, but I haven't tried green beans. If you make a mistake with them, they can kill you, or others. It just seemed smarter for me to leave it to the pros. Of course, with the condition of our food supply these days, I might as well do it. Their stuff can kill us too.
have been canning for many years and now that the kids are grown up and gone, they want me to Can for them !!!
There's nothing better than home canned food, and your kids know it. Mom, you spoiled them! LOL
I made salsa, guacamole and strawberry jam this past week. I'm getting ready to make apple butter. Jams and jellies are favorites of mine. They make great gift baskets for the holidays.
I'm so sick of squash that I can hardly stand to look at 'em. It's the only thing that really took in my garden this year.
I’v got a big family so it’s no problem UNLESS I miss a couple of days going out to it.
Then I have very giant zuks that I give to a neighbor.
The next day or so I have zucchini bread on my porch!
Tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes (the kids love to dig up the potatoes wiht their hands) bell peppers (all colors) and a some spices.
I just picked about 70lbs of pears from my orch...only one tree, so it's not an orchard.
How long and at what temperature ?
Infectious Diseases, p. 756 1984, Roger G. Finch, M.B.
These organisms used to be labeled "strict" anaerobes, meaning that they grow only in the absence of oxygen. However, the conditions in a leaky can aren't anaerobic, only nearly so. A small point, perhaps.
Dunno in food - perhaps someone with experience in that field might chime in. The toxins (there are six serotypes) in the laboratory are "relatively heat-labile requiring about 10 min at 100 degrees C for inactivation." (Walden and Kluge, p. 761) Ten minutes of boiling? I'll have to defer that one...
256 degrees and 28 psi for 15 minutes
True. It’s just the cumulative effect of it all lately.
# 1992 Botulism in whitefish in New Jersey. Four members of a Fort Lee family have been stricken with botulism after eating fish bought in Jersey City. [17]
# 1985 Botulism at two Whitespot restaurants in Vancouver, British Columbia in two separate incidents when chopped garlic stored in soybean oil caused outbreaks. CDC
# 1983 Botulism (Type A Clostridium Botulinum) in Peoria, Illinois. 28 persons were hospitalized, and 20 patients were treated with an antitoxin. 12 patients required ventilatory support and 1 death resulted. The source was sauteed onions made from fresh raw onions served on a patty melt sandwich. The sandwiches were served at the Skewer Inn Restaurant located inside Northwoods Mall.[20]
# 1971 Botulism in vichyssoise manufactured by Bon Vivant, Inc. of Newark, New Jersey. On July 2, 1971 FDA released a public warning after learning that a New York man had died and his wife had become seriously ill due to botulism after eating a can of Bon Vivant vichyssoise soup. The company commenced a recall of the 6,444 cans of vichyssoise soup made in the same batch as the can known to be contaminated. The FDA soon discovered that the company’s processing practices raised questions not only about the lots of the vichyssoise, but also about all other products packed by the company. The effectiveness check of the recall had revealed a number of swollen or otherwise suspect cans among Bon Vivant’s other products, so FDA extended the recall to include all Bon Vivant products. The FDA shut down the company’s Newark, New Jersey plant on July 7, 1971. Although only five cans of Bon Vivant soup were found to be contaminated with the botulin toxin, all in the initial batch of vichyssoise recalled and part of the first 324 cans tested. The ordeal destroyed public confidence in the company’s products and the Bon Vivant name. Bon Vivant filed for bankruptcy within a month of the announcement of the recall. [22]
Thanks for the response. I had a feeling that you might state something to that effect, which seems entirely plausible to me.
I was reading elsewhere something that had me on the fence about this too, but I can’t remember where it was now...
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