Peanut: Cumin Recall (The Big Thread)

[CMdeux]

Really helpful:

http://achesongroup.com/2015/01/product-may-higher-risk-suspect/

Was Ground Cumin Contamination Intentional?

In November 2014, TAG became involved with a client who was recalling a variety of spice blends due to the presence of undeclared peanut and almond allergens.  At that time, there were a number of questions around how this issue arose, but ultimately it had to be simply categorized as one of those things that defy a logical explanation. The recall was eventually found to be caused by the use of cumin from a single supplier that was contaminated by the nut allergens.

        The oddity was that no one in the upstream supply chain admitted to using or even having either of these allergens in their facilities.  At face value, the fact that no one would admit to having these allergens was not a total surprise, because it's not unusual for no one to admit such a mistake.

        This whole situation would have meant nothing significant in terms of new risks if I had not happened to bump into my friend and colleague Dr. Steve Taylor (Professor of Food Science and Technology and Co-Director of FARRP at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln) in mid-December.  Steve and I were chatting about the recall when he mentioned that he was involved in a similar situation – with different companies and suppliers.  We agreed that something odd was going on, since the levels of allergens seen in the cumin were high and unlikely to have been due to cross contamination.

        As the conversation continued, Steve speculated that the contamination was deliberate, and we quickly came up with the very plausible possibility that someone at the very start of the supply chain had come up with the idea that adding peanut shells or almond husks to cumin – especially if it is already ground – would be a very effective way to add bulk at almost zero cost.  Thus the idea of this being an economically motivated adulteration situation came to be.

        Since that first recall in November, there have been others, one of the most recent of which was on December 26 when Adams Flavors, Foods & Ingredients of Gonzales, Texas voluntarily recalled cumin products because they may contain undeclared peanut proteins. According to their press release: "We were notified by one of our third party suppliers that one of the spice ingredients purchased contains peanut proteins, allergens that are not declared on the products' ingredient statements." This recall then led to a variety of secondary recalls by companies that had been using the cumin as an ingredient in other products.

        So, the main question I see is: Is it plausible that these all reflect economically motivated adulteration (EMA)?  At the time of this writing, a quick Internet search revealed the price of ground cumin to be $3,500 to $4,000 per ton – I don't know if this is a realistic price, but at that price adding 1% peanut shells at zero costs is essentially a profit of $350-$400 on a sale of ten tons of ground cumin.  Not a bad margin at zero cost for the grinder to put in their pocket.

        Perhaps I simply have an overactive imagination, and chatting with Steve Taylor got the two of us into an over-speculative mode. But my instincts are that this is a real EMA situation, and my advice to all those using cumin – and other spices that could be part of this EMA thinking – is to start testing incoming ingredients for allergens before we have an outbreak of peanut-related anaphylactic reactions on our hands.

Yup.  That's been my speculation since late December when it became clear that this was an importer.

Penzey's

Stinky sent this email to me in case I could post it before she could.big typically don't post employee contact info, but in this case I'm going to. I think need to know who is telling us what in this situation.

From: Emily Barbeau [mailto:emily.barbeau@penzeys.com]
Sent: Monday, January 12, 2015 1:36 PM
To: Stinky
Subject: Penzeys Cumin

Hi Stinky,
My name is Emily Barbeau and I work with Penzeys Spices in Wisconsin. I was able to look into your question about our cumin. Our cumin supplier is in India, not Turkey.  Therefore, we were not connected to that recall of cumin at all. Rob, our Quality Assurance director, is requesting peanut-specific information from our supplier.  But, as we are aware right now, our cumin is not affected. Thank you for inquiring. I hope you have a wonderful week. Let me know if you have any other questions. Thanks
Emily Barbeau

--
Emily Barbeau
Penzeys Spices
Retail Operations

Edited to add subsequent email from Ms Barbeau:

The cumin sold at Penzeys currently (January 2015) is from India. 

AND-- the contaminated stuff is of Turkish origin, apparently.

Which leads us to the cost associated with this recall.  I would assume with great confidence that the FDA & ICE got this party started less under contact for allergens and more for bulked, misrepresented product.  If I were an importer of record that's what would have me quaking in my boots even if everything I did was by the book.

What we do know was that imported almond powder into the UK mislabeled almond powder by the country of origin supplier was bulked with about 50% peanut powder probably because it's cheaper.  The restauranteurs had no idea what they were using going by the product label.  Only testing uncovered the product tampering.

Could this have been what was done with a spice that is expensive in dimensional weight compared to peanut?  Maybe.  The contact was traced to country of origin, the trade company from the country of export (not necessarily country of origin) did not disclose peanut innocently or no, and it was entered as such. 

This is what I think.  I'm no conspiracy theorist, by any means.  But I do believe that for detectable peanut to have been found on the kind of SCALE that is necessary to have triggered a recall of this magnitude, it's adulteration.

Which begs the question-- how??

If it was ground HERE, that's really wild, because-- well, obviously-- coriander seeds, versus unassuming brown stuff that's been ground?

I'd guess that the 75% rule is being met via additional handling/processing.  Don't know details enough to know if repacking constitutes "manufacture" but guessing that sieving might, and that is a QC step.

[Jessica]

Is there a reliable source that is saying it's from Turkey? Penzeys' email was the first I'd seen the turkey vs india thing.

[guess]

The closest to accurate would be a bill of lading identifying the exporter and country of origin to eliminate transshipments as best possible.  An exporter may have nothing to do with manufacture or country of origin.

For example, I would not be able to clear Customs with the designation that something is "from" somewhere.  In technical terms it is meaningless. 

[Stinky10]

Hi Sarah,
Just wanted to let you know that we talked with our supplier of cumin. There are absolutely no peanuts or peanut products produced in the facility.  So, in addition to our supplier being in India, not Turkey, there is also no possibility of cross-contamination in the facility. Thanks again for  your inquiry. Have a nice day.
Emily

--
Emily Barbeau
Penzeys Spices
Retail Operations

[Stinky10]

I will email her about the theory and see if I get a response. 

[guess]

She would have to use trade terms and understand product of origin when items undergo a substantial transformation to enter a new category in the Harmonized Schedule.

See upthread about the recalls on ground cumin clearly labeled "Made in USA" with the American flag when it is a product grown in another country entered into US commerce as, most likely, cumin seeds whole.  The US company grinds it, puts their label on and is able by law to make the marketing claim that it is a product of USA origin. 

I've known this prior to food allergies because there are complex formulas for entry that make thousands of not millions of dollars of difference in both tariffs and potential penalties for categorization errors.

Countries and exporters also attempt to circumvent trade regulations through transshipments.  Example: a container of textiles from China first ships to Malaysia where labels with "Made in Malaysia" are sewn in.  A local exporter ships from there to USA with country of origin listed as Malaysia when actually it's China.

Next let's look at legit substantial transformation. Thread from USA origin ships to China to be made into cloth. That shipment entered China as country of origin USA, is shipped back to USA as country of origin China.  Those bolts of cloth are made into shirts in USA (possibly with some notions of other finishing touches in a designated free trade zone macquiladora in Mexico becoming a product of USA origin.

Quite frankly, I'm not convinced without specific knowledge any US manufacturer in a corporate office knows how these things work.  It's why we were in business--to do this for them.

[Stinky10]

Well, Penzeys Cumin is labeled 

Ground Cumin:  India - right on the label.  They do not put a US flag on it.

[CMdeux]

Ahhhhh-- but that is important.  That means (in all liklihood) that it ENTERED the US already ground.

[guess]

Yes, that is a highly positive indicator assuming there was no transshipment or clerical error or they chose not to exercise their ability to market the product as Made in USA despite the transformation.  No product of USA either by quasi-legal definition or otherwise must label itself as a domestic product.  To do so is a marketing effort and not a requirement unless it is entering the commerce of another country.

Someone mentioned how we were keeping track of so many products.  Part of the 'problem' is we had enough indicators to produce predictive values so when people are or were making calls they almost had to educate the cs reps they were speaking to.

[Macabre]

Please see the first post for an updated list of recalled foods. The first post will be updated as new recalls are made.


Peanut: Cumin Recall (The Big Thread)

Just want to post this again.  A few new recalls have been added to the first thread--and one is Delights, a product that several here use.  And the recall involves foods that one would not normally expect to contain cumin (so I don't know if they actually do or if this company is just being extra careful because of shared lines.

[Stinky10]

I'm so confused - isn't that link to THIS thread?

[Stinky10]

Ahhhhh-- but that is important.  That means (in all liklihood) that it ENTERED the US already ground.

or maybe it says Cumin Seed : India - my point was that it says India.   I will take a picture of the label sometime this weekend - would do it now...but I'm at work.   

[guess]

You can but it's not necessary.  We already know it's not in origin a product grown in USA.  We know the product entered our commerce from a foreign source. 

[CMdeux]

Please see the first post for an updated list of recalled foods. The first post will be updated as new recalls are made.


Peanut: Cumin Recall (The Big Thread)

Just want to post this again.  A few new recalls have been added to the first thread--and one is Delights, a product that several here use.  And the recall involves foods that one would not normally expect to contain cumin (so I don't know if they actually do or if this company is just being extra careful because of shared lines.

Oh man.  Salsas.

I've been eying the cupboard and hoping against hope that it wouldn't come to that, and knowing that it would eventually....   

[CMdeux]

ANOTHER company, another meat product:

http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/recalls-and-public-health-alerts/recall-case-archive/archive/2015/recall-010-2015-release

Heywood's Meat Haus & Provision Co., a Marietta, Georgia establishment, is recalling approximately 931 pounds of tasso (pork shoulder) products due to misbranding and undeclared allergens, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today. The products may contain peanuts, known allergens, which are not declared on the product label.

The following item, produced on various dates from August 25, 2014 to January14, 2015, is subject to recall: [Label]

    10-lb. cases of "Heywood's Provision Company Tasso"

The product subject to recall bears the establishment number "EST. 44805" inside the USDA mark of inspection, and was shipped to restaurant locations in Georgia.