Ever wondered where the E.coli outbreak started after its first victim on December 2015? The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) finally traced the culprit: General Mills All Purpose Flour.
General Mills has just voluntarily recalled 10 million pounds in total, because of 38 E. coli incident reports, with some victims pointing their fingers to the brand. The company maintained that it is the first time that a contamination of such kind happened in the history of their products and assured that an investigation is ongoing to determine any possible link.
“As a leading provider of flour for 150 years, we felt it was important to not only recall the product and replace it for consumers if there was any doubt, but also to take this opportunity to remind our consumers how to safely handle flour,” President of General Mills Baking division Liz Nordlie said in a press release from General Mills.
As per Food Safety News, General Mills is recalling six SKUs (stock keeping units or UPC codes) of Gold Medal branded flour, two SKU’s of Signature Kitchens branded flour and one SKU of Gold Medal Wondra branded flour. For further safety from E.coli, it is also good to note the retailers that received shipments from General Mills which are the following: Safeway, Albertsons, Jewel, Shaws, Vons, United, Randalls, and Acme.
Before General Mills announced the recall, there was no confirmed report that the E.coli outbreak started from the company. However, the FDA took the matter on its hands and discovered that the General Mills flour factory in Kansas City was contaminated with E.coli for one November week in 2015. Since one incidence surfaced last December, the E.coli outbreak has reached 20 states (via Gizmodo).
According to Gizmodo, Americans use flour sparingly and a bag could last for months in the cupboards. Also, one container is used to shelf a bag of flour which means everytime a new bag is poured into the container, the whole mixture is automatically contaminated with E.coli.
As a precautionary measure to avoid E. coli, FDA is instructing consumers to throw General Mills products found at their homes. The containers used to store the flour must be washed and sanitized. Everyone, especially children, should not hold raw dough at home or at restaurants.
Keep your family safe by contacting FDA at 1-888-SAFEFOOD for food safety questions. You can also contact General Mills for additional questions at 800-230-8103.
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