Sticking It To You & Your Family Since At Least 2006
(Verbatim • Factory Food)
OK, I really intended not to write on this subject anymore, but you just can’t pass on stuff like this:
November 2, 2006Mr. Stewart Parnell
(redacted)
(redacted)Dear Mr. Parnell,
I appreciate the recent opportunity to visit your 8lakely facility. In response to a request from the Peanut Corporation of America, JLA has been working with your company to investigate a recent complaint about Salmonella in roasted, granulated peanuts produced at your Blake1y, Georgia facility. Upon review of the documents and a plant tour, I offer the following summary.
It is my understanding that organic Chinese peanuts were the source of the roasted, granulated peanut product that has been reported. After review with Danny Kilgore and Jeff McFay, it seems likely that the Chinese organic peanuts could be a source for the microbial hazards given the nature of fertilizers used on organic products. Based on our discussions, PCA Blakely does not document the inbound raw material microbial load and does not validate their roasting conditions to confirm temperature levels within the roasting zones. Salmonella is typically destroyed at 240F for 30 minutes. This time and temperature condition is based on even roasting and heating under ideal conditions without variation in moisture contents. Peanuts typically vary in moisture such that much of the roasting is an effort to drive off moisture first and then begin roasting. The roasting process used by PCA should be sufficient to kill most bacteria but without documentation to validate roasting temperatures, a kill step cannot be assumed. The fact that the roasted, granulated product was packaged in a raw peanut zone also indicates a likely scenario for cross contamination. The PCA Blakely plant had been using water in their cleanup operations which also adds to the possibility of microbial contamination.
The investigation suggests likely scenarios that microbial contamination could have occurred in the production and packaging of roasted, granulated peanuts at PCA Blakely. Efforts are underway to correct many of the issues address during the investigation and the management commitment to food safety is evident in the actions taken to date.
Respectfully Submitted,
Darlene M. Cowart, Ph:D.
President and COO
JLA USA
Did you happen to notice the reference to Chinese peanuts? Guess what sort of fertilizers she refers to? That’s right, some sort of imported Chinese poop. And oh yes, I really do believe that the “management commitment to food safety is evident” at the House of Peanuts all right:
Stewart Parnell
_________________________
From: Stewart Parnell (redacted)
Sent: Monday, October 06, 2008 8:39 AM
To: Sammy Lightsey
Cc: David Voth
Subject: RE: GranulesWe need to discuss this…the time lapse, besides the cost is costing us huge $$$$$ and causing obviously a huge lapse in time from the time we pick up peanuts until the time we can invoice…
We need to find out somehow what our competition (JIMBOS) is doing and at the very least mimic their policy…
We need to protect our self and the problem is that the tests absolutely give us no protection, just an indication at best…
Let’s talk..
Stewart
___________________________
From: Sammy Lightsey (redacted)
Sent: Monday, September 29, 2008 12:40 P<
To: Stew.parnell(redacted) David Voth
Subject: GranulesWe received Final Lab results from Deibel this morning and we have a Positive for Salmonella. Lot 8268 of Granules produced last Thursday. We produced 441 cases of this lot and we produced meal out of the same lot. Samples are going out today for retesting and we will have results on Thursday. Some of this product has been shipped. 280 cases of Medium Chop to Fieldbrook and 40 cases of Meal to Kerry Ingredients. These customers need to be called and the product placed on HOLD until this can be cleared. All remaining product is on Hold in the plant. We have not had any High micro numbers of any kind in Granules and we completely disassembled the line this weekend for cleaning.
So in summary, then:
Opening Statement of Rep. Henry A. Waxman
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Commerce
“The Salmonella Outbreak: The Continued Failure to Protect the Food Supply”
February 11, 2009…On January 19, PCA’s president, Mr. Parnell, sent an e-mail pleading with FDA officials to allow the company to keep doing business. He wrote that they desperately at least need to turn the Raw Peanuts on our floor into money.”
He assured FDA that these peanuts “would be cooked [and] further processed by us in our Texas facility.” This is the same facility that was shut down yesterday after salmonella was found there too.
→ B.Dunn, Feb 11, 2009, 04 19 am
Assurance? This is beyond scary…it’s arrogantly pitting life vs death.
— Kat_Princess Feb 11, 06:54 pm #
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