A Michigan company is recalling 2,623 40-pound bags, 360 1,500-pound totes of soybean flour and 924 .08-ton loads of bulk soy meal because they may be contaminated with Salmonella. The non-GMO soy meal and flour was used to manufacture human and animal food, and had been distributed since last November.
Thumb Oilseed Producer’s Cooperative of Ubly, Michigan said in a news release that the recall resulted from routine sampling conducted by the company and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that revealed Salmonella in finished product and the manufacturing plant.
No illnesses have been reported.
Thumb Oilseed is cooperating with the FDA in investigating the situation.
The soy flour was distributed in 40-pound paper bags under the names:
— Nex Soy (lot numbers TF112310 thru TF033011)
— Soy Beginnings (product code 285100-NFB; lot numbers TF112310 thru TF033011)
The soy flour was also distributed in 1,500-pound polyurethane totes under the name
Soy Beginnings (product code 285100-NFT, lot numbers TF112310 thru TF082311).
The soy meal was distributed as .08 ton loads after custom processing with lot numbers O011711 thru O081711.
The recalled soybean flour and meal was distributed from November 2010 to September 2011 to a limited group of wholesale customers in Illinois, Vermont, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, New Hampshire and Canada.
Thumb Oilseed said it is contacting these customers and “taking necessary steps to protect consumer health.”
This recall does not involve soy oil products produced by Thumb Oilseed.
Consumers who have purchased the recalled products may return them to Thumb Oilseed Producers Cooperative for a credit or a refund. Contact the company at 989-658-2344 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. EST Monday through Friday.
Animals with Salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and/or vomiting. Some animals will have only decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Infected but otherwise healthy animals can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your animal has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.
In people, Salmonella can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, the frail or elderly, and others with weakened immune systems. There is risk to humans from handling products contaminated with Salmonella, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the product or any surfaces exposed to these products. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe or chronic illnesses.