If you’ve been following the news, you may have seen something about the numerous dog food recalls that have had to be issued because of manufacturing errors that led to possible salmonella contamination at a South Carolina plant. Well, the Food and Drug Administration conducted an investigation, and today they released their results.
The FDA went through the Diamond Pet Foods plant on April 12, and they found four main failures that compromised the safety of the dog food products and led to 15 people getting sick throughout Canada and the United States.
First, the company failed to include hand sanitizing areas at appropriate coordinates within the plant, namely in those places where employees could expect to make direct contact with finished food.
There was also a failure of plant personnel to conduct proper microbiological analysis on animal fat. This is done to ensure that pathogens aren’t introduced into the final product, which is exactly what could happen when an employee touches the food or equipment, as the FDA witnessed happening.
The plant also did not adequately maintain such things as containers, utensils, or equipment. Because of this, certain pieces of equipment had feed residue trapped in hard-to-sanitize gouges. The fourth failure, which ties into what was just mentioned, has to do with the fact that duct tape and cardboard were used on equipment. Such things are nearly impossible to properly clean properly, and not unexpectedly, such items maintained food residue, further compromising safety.
According to news sources, raw materials for dietary supplements containing ephedrine alkaloids have been seized by U.S Marshals directed by the Food and Drug Administration in an attempt to reign in on the banned material.
The seizure of the raw materials imported by Infinity Marketing Group, Inc. totals a value of about $70,000.
The FDA has been heavily involved in attempting to reign in the material found in certain dietary supplements after a 2004 ban was issued due to the potential risks associated with the material, which include heart attack, stroke and death.
The FDA confirmed in a chemical analysis of shipping drums that the banned materials were reportedly present without being identified through the drum labels.
The seizure took place in Rancho Dominguez in California as part of a continues effort to remove the dietary supplements containing ephedrine alkaloids from the market.
As a personal injury lawyer Los Angeles, I understand the inherent dangers of defective products and the risks they entail. I hope this information can help raise awareness about this recalled product and keep consumers safe. If you or a loved one has been injured through the use or consumption of a defective product, speak with a product liability lawyer Los Angeles to learn about the legal options available to you.
According to recent news, the Food and Drug Administration is investigating the much talked about case of seafood species being mislabeled and sold as something different. Reports from the National Fisheries Institute show that the goal is to go through seafood packages allegedly filled with less desirable types of fish that are labeled as expensive and exquisite items.
Officials have confirmed that the seafood trade association discussed the issue in a recent conference. The FDA will begin the DNA tests using over 100 samples of fish from warehouses, distribution centers and imports. NFI says that they will be using the latest DNA bar coding technology for the testing, which involves taking genetic material from each fish and comparing it against all the various gene fragments so they may determine whether species present in the packages match the labels or not.
As said in the reports from NFI, FDA firmly believes that most of the mislabeling happens after the product has left the producer’s facility; they think the issue is at the retail level. Over 1,000 seafood samples will be tested until the end of this investigation.
As a Los Angeles personal injury lawyer I’m familiar with many personal injury cases related to mislabeled products. I sincerely hope that the authorities will come up with the most proficient way of working these issues so less consumers will fall ill because of a rupture of the product liability trust all consumers place in the hands of the companies. Remember to keep the contact of a reliable personal injury lawyer close enough if your health is ever threatened in any way.
