McCain Foods USA expands recall to all products it makes at Colton, CA facility

Details about the recalls by national retailers and multiple manufacturers over common ingredients remain murky but  McCain Foods USA Inc. is now recalling all products from its Colton, CA facility 60 miles east of Los Angeles, which produces fire roasted caramelized or sauteed frozen fruit and vegetable products.  Ingredients from that California facility may be the cause of the multiple recalls in recent days.

In a news release, McCain said it “identified a potential health risk” to its product line at Colton.  But the company was not exact about its problem at Colton, when it originated, volume of production involved or where it was distributed.

More than 755.5 tons of additional meat and poultry products were recalled by a half-dozen companies over the weekend for containing various vegetables apparently supplied by McCain over potential contamination from both Salmonella and Listeria pathogens.

The privately-held McCain Foods USA, based in Lisle, IL about 30 miles east of Chicago, employs more than 4,000 in the United States at 11 production facilities located from Maine to California.  McCain Foods USA’s last embarrassing recall moments came in April 2017 when it took certain Roundy’s, Harris Teeter, and Southern Style hash browns off the market for containing “extraneous golf ball materials.”  It seems golf balls were “inadvertently harvested” with the potatoes used to make the hash browns.  The result was a choking hazard that gave McCain more unwanted publicity than most recalls do.

McCain said the new recall of all products from its Colton, CA production facility is “a cautionary measure for the safety of consumers.” It said it is “working in cooperation with our customers and the appropriate regulatory authorities and will provide any appropriate updates.”   Food Safety News offered McCain Foods an opportunity to provide more details about dual contamination apparently coming from its Colton plant, but the company has not responded to our inquiries.

The first sign of trouble at Colton, CA occurred on Oct. 15 when McCain Foods recalled Fire Roasted Black Bean Corn for potential contamination with Listeria monocytogenes or Salmonella. National retailers including WalMart, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods and 7-Eleven quickly followed with up with recalls for their own brands.

On Oct. 18, the Midwest grocery chain Hy-Vee named McCain Foods supplied ingredients for fresh meat, poultry, and potato products under recall from all of its 245 stores across eight states. The recall notice said the ingredients from McCain, caramelized mushrooms and dried tomatoes, are potentially contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella.

The next day, Oct. 19, a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) told Food Safety News that, as of then, McCain Foods had been identified as the supplier in all of the corn-related recalls the agency has posted in recent days.

Over the weekend, however, a half dozen food companies recalled more than 755.5 tons of meat and poultry products for containing various onions, vegetables or corn that were contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella. All said they were recalling their products because of action by their suppliers who they declined to name.

Also on Oct. 19, FSIS and FDA jointly warned the public about the multiple recalls.

“No illnesses to date have been identified in connection with any of these foods, but consumers should not eat any of the products that have been recalled, as they could be contaminated with Salmonella and/or Listeria monocytogenes.” the joint statement said. “Many of the recalled products require cooking, which if properly done, would reduce the risk of illness from Salmonella or Listeria contamination. However, some of the products are “ready-to-eat” and would not be cooked. In addition, many of the recalled products are expired. If you still have one or more of the recalled products in your home, throw them away or return them to the store you purchased them from. A list of recalled products can be found on the FDA recalls page. Products were sold nationwide. Additional information will be posted as the list of recalls may expand and more information becomes available.”

Worldwide, McCain Foods employs more than 20, 000 people and operates around 55 food-manufacturing plants on six continents in about 110 countries.   FDA’s tracking of the associated recalls includes: