E. coli fears prompt recall of millions of frozen pizzas
Pastor Dale Morgan
E. coli fears prompt recall of millions of frozen pizzas*
* Story Highlights
* Investigators have been probing 21 E. coli illnesses since July
* Nine of the 21 people reported eating Totino's or Jeno's pizza
* General Mills says the problem may be pepperoni that came from a supplier
* Company says it has found no E. coli in its products, recall is a
precaution
MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota (AP) -- General Mills on Thursday recalled about
5 million frozen pizzas sold nationwide under the Totino's and Jeno's
labels because of possible E. coli contamination.
The problem may have come from pepperoni on pizzas produced at a General
Mills plant in Ohio, the suburban Minneapolis-based company said.
CHECK YOUR FREEZER
The recall involves the following frozen pizzas and product code numbers:
• Totino's Party Supreme, 42800-10700
• Totino's Three Meat, 42800-10800
• Totino's Pepperoni, 42800-11400
• Totino's Pepperoni, 42800-92114
• Totino's Classic Pepperoni, 42800-11402
• Totino's Pepperoni Trio, 42800-72157
• Totino's Party Combo, 42800-11600
• Totino's Combo, 42800-92116
• Jeno's Crisp 'n Tasty Supreme, 35300-00561
• Jeno's Crisp 'n Tasty Pepperoni, 35300-00572
• Jeno's Crisp 'n Tasty Combo, 35300-00576
Source: The Associated Press
It said the pepperoni came from a separate supplier, not produced at the
plant itself, but it declined to release the name of the pepperoni
distributor.
The voluntary recall covers pizzas containing pepperoni that have been
produced since July, when the first of 21 E. coli illnesses under
investigation by state and federal authorities emerged.
Nine of the 21 people reported eating Totino's or Jeno's pizza with
pepperoni topping at some point before becoming ill.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that eight of the
victims have been hospitalized, and four have developed a type of kidney
failure.
Eight of the cases were reported in Tennessee, with the other cases
found in smaller numbers in Kentucky, Missouri, New York, Virginia,
Ohio, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Wisconsin and South Dakota.
"We took action on that basis as a precaution, because of the
possibility that a link might exist," said General Mills spokesman Tom
Forsythe. "However, to date we have found no E. coli in our plant, and
we have found no E. coli in our products."
General Mills said it is cooperating fully with the investigation, which
is continuing. The company said it is not naming the pepperoni supplier
because the source of the E. coli is still under investigation.
The company asks consumers to throw away recalled pizzas. They can get
replacements by clipping the bar code from the box and mailing it with
their name and address to Totino's/Jeno's, P.O. Box 200 -- Pizza,
Minneapolis, MN 55440-0200.
Symptoms of E. coli can include stomach cramps and diarrhea. People
typically are ill for two to five days but can develop complications
including kidney failure.
In late September, the Topps Meat Co. recalled 21.7 million pounds of
frozen hamburger patties after 40 people in eight states got sick from
contaminated beef believed to have been imported from Canada.
The New Jersey-based company shut down several days later.