ConAgra Foods Announces Resolution Related to 2007 Voluntary Peanut Butter Recall
May 20 2015 - 12:00PM
Business Wire
- Peter Pan® peanut butter is safe and
wholesome for consumers to continue to eat.
- The U.S. government agrees ConAgra
Foods made significant upgrades to its plant, policies and
procedures eight years ago to help ensure the safety of its peanut
butter. These upgrades were based on new knowledge food safety
experts gained about peanut butter during this outbreak.
- ConAgra Foods has become a
recognized leader in food safety.
- ConAgra Foods acted responsibly
during the 2007 recall. It took immediate and comprehensive
action eight years ago, quickly and voluntarily recalling all of
its peanut butter products on Feb. 14, 2007 and stopping production
for almost six months, until the integrity of new production
processes was proven.
- Despite testing, no finished product
showed contamination between 2004 and 2007.
- The U.S. government agrees that
ConAgra Foods has a demonstrated record of sharing with both
competitors and government agencies scientific data learned about
the safe manufacture of peanut butter.
ConAgra Foods, Inc. (NYSE: CAG) announced today a negotiated
resolution by a subsidiary, ConAgra Grocery Products Company LLC,
with the Office of the United States Attorney for the Middle
District of Georgia and the Consumer Protection Branch of the
Department of Justice. The resolution relates to the previously
announced investigation into a peanut butter recall that occurred
in February 2007, more than eight years ago. Peter Pan peanut
butter is safe for consumers to continue to eat.
ConAgra Foods immediately and voluntarily recalled its Peter Pan
peanut butter in February 2007 once the presence of salmonella was
suspected. Peter Pan peanut butter was reintroduced into the
marketplace in August 2007 after ConAgra Foods took significant
steps to improve the Sylvester, GA., facility where Peter Pan was
made, using new knowledge about the potential for salmonella in
peanut butter.
Peter Pan peanut butter has continued to be safe for consumers
to enjoy since its reintroduction to the marketplace more than
seven-and-a-half years ago. Leading food safety practices,
including robust testing, new equipment and extensive training,
have helped ensure that the plant has made safe and wholesome
peanut butter on a daily basis. ConAgra Foods has been recognized
as a leader in food safety since that time. The company and its 175
dedicated employees in Sylvester, GA., who make Peter Pan peanut
butter products every day, are deeply committed to food safety.
“We did not, and never will, knowingly ship a product that is
not safe for consumers. We’ve invested heavily in leading-edge food
safety technology and practices over the past eight years, and we
are thankful for all of the people who recognize that and are loyal
Peter Pan fans,” said Dr. Al Bolles, chief technical and operations
officer for ConAgra Foods. “ConAgra Foods took full responsibility
in 2007, taking immediate steps to determine the potential causes
of and solutions for the problem and acting quickly and
definitively to inform and protect consumers. This incident brought
to light previously unknown aspects of making safe peanut butter,
and we have been passionate about sharing what we learned to help
others join us in creating an even safer food supply. We will
remain vigilant to maintain the trust we’ve worked so hard to earn
from our consumers.”
Before the 2007 recall, food safety experts and the regulatory
community believed that salmonella was unlikely to be present in
finished peanut butter products. It was generally believed that the
low moisture content of finished peanut butter inhibited the growth
of bacteria such as salmonella. This case provided new insight into
the essential components of making safe peanut butter, and ConAgra
Foods has applied these components each day since reopening its
Sylvester plant in August 2007. Prior to 2007, ConAgra Foods
employed industry standard food safety practices for the production
of peanut butter, including random testing of finished products.
That testing led to a positive finding of salmonella in the
Sylvester facility in 2004. The 2004 product was destroyed prior to
shipment. None of ConAgra Foods’ testing between 2004 and 2007
showed contamination in any finished product. Less common but more
robust testing protocols were used in 2007 after the evidence of a
salmonella outbreak was found. Today, ConAgra Foods uses those
testing mechanisms, and more robust food safety practices at every
step of its production, to ensure that each jar of peanut butter is
safe for consumers.
Under the terms of a Plea Agreement with the government, ConAgra
Grocery Products Company will agree to plead guilty to a single
misdemeanor violation of The Food, Drug & Cosmetic Act. If the
plea is accepted by the U.S. District Court for the Middle District
of Georgia, the government’s investigation into the recall will
conclude and ConAgra Grocery Products Company will make payments
totaling $11.2 million to the federal government. The expense
relating to this payment was accrued during previous periods.
Beginning in 2007, ConAgra Foods reimbursed and compensated
impacted consumers and customers, took significant steps to create
a state-of-the-art facility in Sylvester, GA, and invested $275
million in quality assurance infrastructure upgrades to enhance
food safety practices company-wide.
The signing of the Plea Agreement was the first formal step
toward completing the legal resolution of this matter. The Plea
Agreement is subject to Court approval, which will be sought along
with the formal sentencing process in the coming months.
About ConAgra FoodsConAgra Foods, Inc., (NYSE: CAG) is
one of North America's largest packaged
food companies with branded and private branded food found in
99 percent of America’s households, as well as a strong
commercial foods business serving restaurants and foodservice
operations globally. Consumers can find recognized brands such
as Banquet®, Chef Boyardee®, Egg Beaters®, Healthy Choice®,
Hebrew National®, Hunt's®, Marie Callender's®,
Orville Redenbacher's®, PAM®, Peter Pan®, Reddi-wip®, Slim
Jim®, Snack Pack® and many other ConAgra Foods brands, along
with food sold by ConAgra Foods under private brand
labels, in grocery, convenience, mass merchandise, club and
drug stores. Additionally, ConAgra Foods supplies frozen
potato and sweet potato products as well as other vegetable, spice,
bakery and grain products to commercial and foodservice
customers. To learn more about our commitment to food safety
at ConAgra Foods, please visit
http://www.conagrafoods.com/our-company/our-commitment/food-safety.
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150520006120/en/
ConAgra FoodsMedia:Teresa Paulsen, 402-240-5210Vice President,
Communication & External
RelationsTeresa.Paulsen@ConAgraFoods.comorInvestors:Chris
Klinefelter, 402-240-4154Vice President, Investor
RelationsChris.Klinefelter@ConAgraFoods.com
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