New Era Expands Nationwide Recall of Canned Vegetables for Botulism Risk

Chrissie Cole

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced they are expanding a nationwide recall of canned vegetables for a third time due to potential Clostridium botulinum (C. botulinum) risk.

C. botulinum produces the toxin that creates botulism which can cause life threatening illness and sometimes death. The affected New Era products included in this recall weigh between 6 and 7 pounds and include various types of asparagus, beans and black eyed peas.

The FDA has not received any reports of illness. However, they are advising consumers to discard any recalled products even if they appear normal due to potential serious health risks.

The potentially contaminated products are marketed under ten different brand names:

1. Classic Sysco
2. Code
3. Frosty Acres Restaurant's Pride Preferred
4. GFS
5. Kitchen Essentials
6. Monarch Heritage
7. Necco
8. New Era
9. Nugget
10. Reliance Sysco

The recalled products are also distributed under private label brands. Products packaged by New Era directly are included in the recall, so consumers must check the lot numbers located on the can bottom to determine if the product is part of the recall.

For a complete list of specific recalled New Era products and lot codes, please visit the FDA's website.

This recall is the most recent to result from an ongoing investigation of New Era Canning's processing plant by the FDA and the Michigan Department of Agriculture. The FDA initiated an inspection of New Era Canning, along with inspections of other low acid canned food manufacturers, following four cases of botulism in consumers who had consumed canned, hot dog chili sauce in the summer of 2007.