- Other Jif peanut butter products have been voluntarily recalled, according to the Food and Drug Administration.
- Snack and candy makers and sellers have recalled products, including some sold at 7-Eleven, Walmart and Safeway.
- JM Smucker, which manufactures Jif, has an online form for customers seeking reimbursement for Jif products.
As a result of the recall of certain Jif peanut butter products, other items containing peanut butter have also been recalled.
Other products recalled out of caution for potential salmonella contamination include take-out fruit and vegetable cups with peanut butter sold at 7-Eleven and Wawa stores, snacks sold nationwide at stores such as Albertsons and Safeway and fudge sold at Walmart, according to the Food and Drug Administration.
The FDA and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, along with other state and local health agencies, have begun investigating a multi-state salmonella outbreak linked to certain Jif products. On May 20, manufacturer JM Smucker Co. announced a voluntary recall of certain products, including creamy, crunchy, natural peanut butters produced at a plant in Lexington, Kentucky.
For the list of recalled products and the numbers and codes to find out if your product is affected, go to the FDA website.
So far, 16 people in 12 states have reported illnesses linked to the outbreak, the CDC said. Two were hospitalized.
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JM Smucker has set up an online form for consumers seeking a rebate for recalled products.
“We are committed to reimbursing affected consumers,” the company says on the site.
The refund option comes after the company initially suggested consumers throw away the products. But consumers don’t need to have the products to claim a discount, the company told USA TODAY in a statement. “We ask consumers to complete the form to the best of their abilities and we will work to issue an appropriate refund.”
The company said that, as part of standard procedure, it temporarily halted production at its main manufacturing facility for Jif in Lexington, Ky., to work with officials in their investigation of the outbreak. In the meantime, Smucker’s Memphis plant, which also makes Jif, will “maximize production,” the company said.
How big is the Jif recall?
Health officials and the company have not released information on the size of the recall – how much peanut butter was produced and shipped, and how many products are affected.
That’s not unusual because it can take weeks to assess the number of products affected, said Sarah Sorscher, deputy director of regulatory affairs at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a non-profit consumer advocacy organization focused on food systems.
“Peanut butter is found in many products,” she told USA TODAY. “It would not be surprising if this recall were expanded in the coming weeks to cover additional products and brands.”
Peanut butter also has a long shelf life, she said, “so this recall is likely to last for months, with many consumers and even some retailers not quickly identifying the recalled product.”
During a 2017 soy butter recall, Sorscher said “consumers were able to order the recalled product on Amazon five months after the recall.”
The FDA said an environmental sample taken in 2010 from the Lexington, Ky., plant linked the current strain of salmonella to the plant.
This suggests there has been long-standing contamination there, said Bill Marler, an attorney and food safety advocate who represents a client who says he fell ill from a buttermilk product. peanut that has been touched.
“The 2010 sample and the 2022 diseases match a whole genome sequence, which means they are identical,” he told USA TODAY. “This means that the exact strain of salmonella had been present in the plant for at least 12 years.”
The FDA inspection database also shows other matching salmonella samples from 2014 from Kentucky, likely the same plant, Marler said. “Smuckers and the FDA should confirm this and release all inspection reports since 2010.”
More recalled products made with Jif
►Albertson. Albertsons Companies, which has more than 2,200 stores in 34 states and the District of Columbia, voluntarily recalled 11 store-prepared items made with Jif Peanut Butter, including its Readymeals Quad Peanut Butter, Apple, Pretzel, Brownie snack sold in 23 states in stores. including ACME, Albertsons, Andronico’s Community Markets, Carrs-Safeway, Eagle, King’s, Balducci’s, Lucky, Pak ‘N Save, Safeway and Vons.
Other items were sold at stores including Haggen, Tom Thumb, United, Amigos, Market Street, Albertsons Market, Pak ‘N Save, Shaw’s, Star Market, Randalls and Jewel-Osco.
►Fudgeamentals. The Melville Company, New York, is recalling Jif Peanut Butter Fudge, packaged in 8-ounce plastic containers and 16-ounce plastic trays.
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►Del Monte Fees. The food maker is recalling four products, including Del Monte Peanut Butter Apples sold at stores including 7-Eleven. They have been identified with a “Best If Used By” date on or before May 30, 2022.
►Wow. Wawa stopped selling the 16-ounce Jif Creamy Peanut Butter it sold in its stores and recalled the Apple Peanut Butter Ladle sold.
►Fresh country. The Spring, Texas company is recalling certain fresh-cut fruit snack trays and fruit snack cups — containing foods such as apples, cheese, celery, pretzels and peanut butter — distributed at various stores in retail in Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, DC and Virginia -Western. Some have expiration dates up to June 4.
►Coblentz chocolate factory. The Walnut Creek, Ohio company is recalling several products, including Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup, Graham Peanut Butter Sandwich, Peanut Butter Chocolate Toffee Corn and a selection of gift boxes containing assorted sweets.
►Mary’s Harvest Fresh Foods Inc. The Portland, Ore., company is recalling Apple Celery To-Go Cups with Jif Peanut Butter, distributed in Oregon and Washington to retailers and supermarkets from February 19 through May 23.
►Taher Inc. The Plymouth, Minnesota-based company is recalling Fresh Seasons 6.3-ounce Power Packs, containing cheese, grapes and other foods, as well as Jif Peanut Butter, distributed in Minnesota and Wisconsin at stores in retail and vending machines. They have expiration dates ranging from May 24 to May 31.
►Garden cutting. The Indianapolis, Indiana-based company is recalling Garden Cut fresh apple and celery take-out products distributed in seven states: Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
►Wilbur chocolate. Food Company Cargill is voluntarily recalling Ritz Milk and Dark Chocolate Coated Peanut Butter Crackers, Peanut Butter Fudge, Peanut Butter Eggs and Fudge sold at the Wilbur Chocolate Retail Store in Lititz, in Pennsylvania, and online at Wilburbuds.com.
Follow Mike Snider on Twitter: @mikesnider.
