DISCLAIMER: It is crucial to read all food labels, EACH time you buy a product to double check the ingredients and disclosures –– manufacturers have been known to change recipes, sourced ingredients, processing facilities, handling/packaging procedures, etc. without warning. Never re-post anything from this blog without this disclaimer!

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Belden Deli Chicago (2301 N Clark) - NOT SAFE

Manager at Belden Deli told me today that they cannot prep a meal that needs to avoid risk of cross-contamination by nut dust/nut protein.  All equipment and prep areas are potentially cross-contaminated by nut protein.  They buy their baked goods (breads included) from small bakeries that are not nut-free.  They buy breads that contain nut meal.  One of their breads contains nuts and crumbles easily.  They have cookies and salads that contain nuts. Crumbs from any of the baked goods could be on any prep surface.  They also said their oil is "vegetable" but may be a blend of different oils on any day, and that they have no information on the blend or how refined the oil is.  The 2 companies they purchase baked goods from are NY Bagel & Biali and North Shore Kosher Bakery.

Saturday, June 23, 2012

Soupbox Restaurants (soupbox.com) - NOT SAFE

Thanks for contacting Soupbox!  I regret to inform you that there are nuts in several of the recipes we make; cookies, salads, dressings and also unfortunately in the Icyfruit.  Our stores are quite small, so alternate prep areas are not possible.  As much as it pains me to refuse customer I'd feel even worse if you were made ill by some accident in our stores.  Better we are safe than sorry. 

Best,

Dru Melton

Friday, June 8, 2012

Party/Playdate talk

"Thanks for inviting us to your party! We are very excited to attend. I just need to ask about the menu. My son has severe peanut allergies, so we're happy to bring our own food. We just wanted to know if there are any things we have to watch out for."

"Can you make sure that my son washes his hands before eating his food?"

Monday, June 4, 2012

Safe Cheerios: Original, Multi Grain, Apple Cinnamon, Chocolate, Cinnamon Burst, Frosted, Fruity and Yogurt Burst

“We can say with complete confidence that MultiGrain Peanut Butter Cheerios will not cross-contaminate other Cheerios varieties. Currently, Honey Nut Cheerios, Banana Nut Cheerios, and Oat Cluster Cheerios Crunch contain ALMOND. Only Multi Grain Cheerios Peanut Butter contains PEANUTS. All other varieties, including original Cheerios, Multi Grain Cheerios, Apple Cinnamon Cheerios, Chocolate Cheerios, Cinnamon Burst Cheerios, Frosted Cheerios, Fruity Cheerios, and Yogurt Burst Cheerios, do not contain nuts. As always, we highly recommend that consumers consult the allergen listing and the ingredient label on any product they may consume. And for more product information, please visit www.cheerios.com/products”.

McDonald's - McFlurries/Rolos are NOT SAFE!

McDonald’s wants to make customers with tree nut allergies and with milk allergies aware of these products so they can make whatever decisions they deem appropriate when visiting McDonald’s restaurants:

McDonald’s is offering a Rolo® McFlurry® dessert on a national basis through approximately October 1, 2012.  McDonald’s has been advised by The Hershey Company that the Rolo candies manufactured for the McDonald’s McFlurry are manufactured on the same equipment that also processes almonds, and all flavors of McFlurry desserts utilize the same equipment in McDonald’s restaurants.

Alexia - unreliable labels?

4/10/13 - answer to my question: I am very allergic to tree nuts and peanuts.  I must avoid food that is potentially cross-contaminated by any particles of tree nut or peanut protein.  Are your products safe for me to eat?

Hello Christine,

Thank you for your email concerning our Alexia products.

We show all major food allergens on the ingredient list and/or they will be noted in a contains statement just after the ingredient list.

The major food allergens are: Eggs, Fish, Milk, Peanut, Shellfish (Crustacean), Soy, Tree Nuts and Wheat.

All major food allergen ingredients will be listed in the ingredient statement and will be noted in the contains statement if they are included in flavorings or spice mixes. Our product formulas change from time to time so we encourage consumers to check both the ingredient list and contains statement each time they buy a product in case a formulation has changed.

We segregate allergen and non-allergen ingredients in our facilities. A “Contains” statement will always be listed below the ingredient list if the product contains any of the top allergens. A “May Contains” statement will be rarely used due to our strong manufacturing processes. We complete thorough cleaning when changing from allergen-containing to non-allergen-containing products. After cleaning, we conduct inspections to verify that it has been effective.

Thanks again for your inquiry.

I hope you have a great day!


Heather
Consumer Affairs Representative
Alexia Foods
Case: 61664600

1-866-484-8676
www.alexiafoods.com

In 2009, "Alexia Foods issues nationwide allergy alert and product recall on its Alexia Olive Oil, Sun-Dried Tomatoes & Pesto Oven Reds frozen potatoes due to undeclared pine nut allergen"

Sea's Gift Roasted Seaweed Snack - Safe!

From:     Benjamin Yu - Jayone
    Subject:     Re: Sea's Gift Roasted Seaweed Snack
    Date:     June 4, 2012 4:35:55 PM CDT



There is no risk of cross contamination in our manufacturing facilities. We have reoccuring safety audits done on these facilities. Plus, our facility there has no peanut or tree nut particles of any kind within. Please feel free to send me an email if you have any other questions or concerns.


Message   
Hi - I have severe allergies to peanuts and tree nuts. I would like to find out if this seaweed snack has any risk of cross-contamination by any particles of tree nuts or peanuts. I see that it is manufactured in Korea, but the only contact info available is with your company. Can you please find out for me if there is any risk of cross-contamination by nut dust? (Sesame is fine, but peanuts or any type of tree nut is NOT ok.)

Hostess (parent) - Wonder Bread; Nature's Pride Breads - safe factories 09 and 55

Did you hear about the Hostess liquidation? Not only will we all be deprived of Twinkies, Ding Dongs and Ho-Ho's... but the tree nut/peanut allergy world loses Wonder Breads and Nature's Pride Breads... 2 of precious few "safe" bread brands. This happens on the heels of Sara Lee selling its bread division to the nut-contaminated Bimbo Bakeries. So, PLEASE support PEPPERIDGE FARMS as one of the last remaining breads I know that is safe for our family to eat!
Hostess owns Wonder Bread and Nature's Pride Bread.
They use peanuts in only 1 factory in their entire system, and it does not supply breads to Chicago area retailers.  There are 3 facilities that supply bread to the Chicago retailers - Factory 09, Factory 55 and Factory 62.  Walnuts are used in a snack product made in Factory 62.  Factory 09 and Factory 55 are safe from peanut or tree nut cross-contamination.  You can find the factory number under the "Best By" date on the package.

Sara Lee Breads (not cakes, etc) - NOT SAFE!

I am so upset.  My "go to" breads are Pepperidge Farm and Sara Lee, because they stand behind their labeling.  I periodically re-check their policies to ensure that my information is current.  Much to my dismay, I learned that in May 2012 the bread division of Sara Lee was sold to Bimbo Bakeries, a company that has never been safe for us.  They have reformed the labeling practices as regards Sara Lee breads, and now say the Sara Lee breads, like all of the Bimbo products, could be cross-contaminated by nut protein.  In fact, here is a posting by the Food Allergy Association of Wisconsin, explaining in further detail:

"Sara Lee has sold their "Fresh Bakery" (breads, etc) to Bimbo Bakeries. Bimbo Bakeries own Boboli, Brownberry, Entenmann's, Arnold, etc...and now Sara Lee breads, buns, rolls, etc.

Sara Lee was always known as labeling well for any cross-contamination (top 8 plus others). Bimbo Bakeries told me that they recommend not consuming their products if we have severe allergies, as they do not have dedicated lines and they do not routinely label for cross-contamination. This is their allergen statement that I asked them to email to me: 

"We want to assure you that we adhere to Good Manufacturing Practices as established by the FDA. We take abundant precaution to prevent cross-contact of allergenic ingredients between batches, and our bakeries are inspected to ensure that they meet or exceed all regulatory and baking industry standards. We understand that highly sensitive consumers need to know when there is even the remote possibility of inadvertent cross-contact of allergenic ingredients during processing. To that end, we disclose that the following allergenic ingredients are used in some of our manufacturing facilities and that inadvertent cross-contact is remotely possible: milk, eggs, soy, peanuts and tree nuts. Wheat is used in all of our facilities and all of our products as an ingredient. Please refer to ingredient labels on our products for full disclosure of the ingredients used in that product."

Arnold breads - not safe!

From their website as of 6/4/2012:
"We understand that highly sensitive consumers need to know when there is even the remotest possibility of inadvertent cross-contact of allergenic ingredients during processing. To that end we disclose that the following allergenic ingredients are used in some of our manufacturing facilities and that inadvertent cross-contact is remotely possible: milk, eggs, soy, almonds, walnuts, peanuts and hazelnuts (filberts)."

Bimbo Bakeries - not safe!

From their website as of 6/4/2012:
"We understand that highly sensitive consumers need to know when there is even the remotest possibility of inadvertent cross-contact of allergenic ingredients during processing. To that end we disclose that the following allergenic ingredients are used in some of our manufacturing facilities and that inadvertent cross-contact is remotely possible: milk, eggs, soy, almonds, walnuts, peanuts and hazelnuts (filberts)."

Call Trader Joe's Hotline to be sure before you buy...

Reality check (October 2012):  Imperfect labeling in Trader Joe's.  For non-Trader Joe's brands, you must contact the manufacturer.  For Trader Joe's house brand: they use many manufacturers.  They impose their GMP's on those sub-vendors for the house brand, and supposedly all follow the GMP's but only some of them actually have their procedures "certified" to meet some allergen safety requirement (I dont know what requirement yet).  Unfortunately, their sub-vendors do not uniformly label for potential cross contamination.  However, Trader Joe's does require them to disclose to Trader Joe's (even if not on their label) whether the facility handles any of the top 8 allergens, and whether the item is manufactured on shared equipment, and if on shared equipment whether their cleaning procedures meet certified standards.  Trader Joe's has a hotline phone number where you can learn the manufacturing/handling environment risks of any of their products. 

What are the Allergen Labeling Standards for Trader Joe's Private Label Products?  From the TJ website as of 6/4/12:

"As with all health and safety related issues, we take food allergy concerns very seriously. We strive to ensure that all of our Trader Joe's brand products are labeled with reliable, accurate, and easy to read ingredient statements.

Trader Joe's strictly adheres to all Federal labeling guidelines. You can be assured that if any of the top eight allergens (milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, wheat and soy) are present in our private label products, they will be clearly labeled in familiar terms in our ingredient statements [e.g. casein (milk)]. You can also be certain that if "natural flavors" or "spices" contain any components that are allergens or are derived from allergens, they will be listed separately within the ingredient statement.

At our customers' request, we are including a "Contains" statement on most of our labels. This statement is an at-a-glance tool where Top 8 allergens present in the ingredients are clearly identified. What this statement doesn't include (there is only so much room on the label) is that all Trader Joe's private label suppliers follow Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP's). We work closely with all of the companies that manufacture our products and require that they are vigilant about minimizing and monitoring any potential cross contamination risk. Some of the steps taken to prevent cross contamination include education and training of employees about allergens, careful labeling and segregation of allergen ingredients, cleaning of lines between production runs and stringent scheduling of product runs. Manufacturers may even use alternate days to process products that contain allergens from those products that do not.

We provide you with all of this information so you can feel confident that you are making informed buying decisions. We want you to feel safe, comfortable and thrilled by with the food choices you are making.

As manufacturers and ingredients can change, we strongly encourage our customers to read ingredient information every time they buy a Trader Joe's brand product (or any product, for that matter)."