JANUARY 14, 2009, 10:46 A.M. ET
By JANE ZHANG
A Virginia company that makes peanut butter for institutional use is recalling peanut butter made at a Georgia plant after health officials linked it to a salmonella outbreak that sickened at least 425 people in 43 states and may have caused three deaths.
Peanut Corp. of America, Lynchburg, Va., said it is recalling products made after June 30 at its Blakely, Ga., processing plant. The company sells bulk peanut butter under the King Nut and Parnell's Pride labels. The products are not sold at retail stores, but at food services and institutions such as schools, hospitals and nursing homes.
"We deeply regret that this has happened," Stewart Parnell, owner and president of Peanut Corp., said in a news release. "Out of an abundance of caution, we are voluntarily withdrawing this product and contacting our customers. We are taking these actions with the safety of our consumers as our first priority."
The company recalled the peanut butter Tuesday after the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identified it as a likely source of the outbreak. On Monday, Minnesota health officials confirmed that salmonella found in a five-pound container of peanut butter genetically matched the bacteria involved in the nationwide outbreak. The peanut butter was made by Peanut Corp. for King Nut Cos., Solon, Ohio, which voluntary recalled its products Saturday.
The CDC said people in several states became sick after eating at institutions such as schools, hospitals and nursing homes hospitals, which only used King Nut brand peanut butter. The CDC and states continue to investigate the cause of the outbreak.
The Food and Drug Administration said Monday night it was inspecting facilities at King Nut and Peanut Corp. to gather samples and collect records.
Write to Jane Zhang at Jane.Zhang@wsj.com
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