Food recalls in EU – Week 12/2015

This week on the EU RASFF (Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed) we can find the following notifications:

1. Alerts followed by a recall from consumers:

– Additives and flavorings/Allergens: undeclared sulphite (1260 mg/kg – ppm) in candy preserved tamarind from Thailand, following an official control on the market. Notified by Denmark, distributed also to Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Netherlands and Switzerland;

– Biotoxins: Diarrhoeic Shellfish Poisoning (DSP) toxins (200 µg/kg – ppb) in mussels (Mytilus edulis) from Ireland, following an official control on the market. Notified by Ireland, distributed also to France.

2. Information for attention/for follow up followed by a recall from consumers:

None

3. Alerts followed by a withdrawal from the market:

– Additives and flavorings/Allergens: undeclared sulphite (34 mg/kg – ppm) in blueberry jam from Spain, following an official control on the market. Notified by Italy;

– Biocontaminants: atropine (0.304 mg/kg – ppm) and scopolamine (0.358 mg/kg – ppm) in millet dumplings from Hungary, following an official control on the market. Notified by Austria;

– Biocontaminants: atropine (0.481 mg/kg – ppm) and scopolamine (0.533 mg/kg – ppm) in millet dumplings from Hungary, following an official control on the market. Notified by Austria;

– Heavy metals: mercury (2.5 mg/kg – ppm) in frozen swordfish from Spain, following an official control on the market. Notified by Belgium;

– Mycotoxins: aflatoxins (B1 = 12; Tot. = 18 µg/kg – ppb) in roasted chopped hazelnuts from Turkey, following an official control on the market. Notified by Netherlands, distributed also to Estonia, Iceland and Switzerland;

– Mycotoxins: aflatoxins (Tot. = 9.4 µg/kg – ppb) in dried white beans from Turkey, following an official control on the market. Notified by Germany, distributed also to Netherlands;

– Pathogenic micro-organisms: Salmonella spp. (presence /25g) in turmeric powder (Curcuma longa) from India, following an official control on the market. Notified from Netherlands, distributed also to Germany;

– Pathogenic micro-organisms: Listeria monocytogenes (presence /25g) in raw milk camembert from Belgium, with raw material from France, following company’s own check. Notified by Belgium, distributed also to Netherlands.

4. Seizures:

None

5. Border rejections:

• absence of health certificate(s) for melon seeds from Nigeria
• acetamiprid (0.12 mg/kg – ppm) and imidacloprid (0.16 mg/kg – ppm) in tea from Morocco
• aflatoxins (B1 = 74 µg/kg – ppb) in groundnuts from Brazil
• aflatoxins (B1 = 135.39; Tot. = 187.54 / B1 = 125.13; Tot. = 188.18 µg/kg – ppb) in pistachios from Iran, via Turkey
• aflatoxins (B1 = 95.7; Tot. = 113 µg/kg – ppb) in pistachios from Iran
• aflatoxins (B1 = 19.4; Tot. = 21.7 / B1 = 16.2; Tot. = 22.1 µg/kg – ppb) in pistachio nuts from Turkey
• aflatoxins (B1 = 4.5 µg/kg – ppb) in blanched peanut kernels from China
• ethion (0.047 mg/kg – ppm) and unauthorised substance carbaryl (0.056 mg/kg – ppm) in chili peppers from Thailand
• fipronil (0.011 mg/kg – ppm) in yardlong beans from the Dominican Republic
• formetanate (1.074 mg/kg – ppm) in sweet peppers from Turkey
• groundnuts in shell from Egypt infested with insects
• imidacloprid (0.19 mg/kg – ppm) in tea from Morocco
• iprodione (0.12 mg/kg – ppm) and unauthorised substance carbendazim (0.22 mg/kg – ppm) in dragon fruit from Vietnam
• irradiation in an unauthorised facility of ground nutmeg kosher from India, via Israel
• poor temperature control (-8.0; -7.8; -8.8 °C) of frozen octopus (Octopus spp) from India
• prohibited substance nitrofuran (metabolite) nitrofurazone (SEM) (1.54 µg/kg – ppb) in casings from Turkey
• Salmonella spp. (presence /25g) in frozen chicken meat preparations (Gallus domesticus) from Brazil and in frozen salted chicken breast fillets and boneless skinless legs from Brazil
• unauthorised substance 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) in food supplement from China
• unauthorised substance anthraquinone (0.18 mg/kg – ppm) in green tea from China
• unauthorised substance carbendazim (0.490 mg/kg – ppm) in oranges from Turkey
• unsuitable organoleptic characteristics and poor hygienic state of chilled white grouper (Epinephelus aeneus) from Senegal