Health Law

Cumberland Tuna Sandwiches At Risk

By Dan Flynn and Suzanna Schreck

Cumberland Farms Inc., best known for its chain of about 900 convenience stores in the eastern United States, is making tuna sandwiches at its seafood processing facility at the intersection of Interstates 90 and 495 east of Boston.

It's been doing so without the benefit of a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan, and that, in the opinion of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), introduces the risk of both botulism growth and scombrotoxin (histamine) formation.

The privately owned Cumberland, with its retail outlets selling groceries and gasoline in 11 states, promised FDA in July that it would get a seafood HACCP plan for its processing facility located in Westborough, MA. By Sept. 11, 2009; however, FDA still had not seen it, and that was enough to get the convenience store giant a 'Warning Letter' from the federal agency that was released Thursday.

FDA is also concerned about Cumberland's failure to maintain sanitation control records for the fish factory. 'Specifically, your firm did not maintain sanitation monitoring records for the eight areas of sanitation associated with your refrigerated, ready-to-eat, modified atmosphere packaged tuna fish sandwiches.'

FDA said Cumberland also promised to provide the sanitation control records, but had not done so.

Attempts to reach Cumberland Farms for comment were unsuccessful. The 72-year old company is still owned by the Haseotes family. Its single cow farm grew into the largest dairy in Massachusetts. It opened a dairy store in Bellingham, MA in 1958, and the first convenience store in the U.S. in 1962.

It partners with Gulf Oil to retail gasoline.

FDA inspected the Cumberland seafood processing facility last June 30 and July 6. It found 'serious violations of the seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) regulation, Title 21, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 123, and the Current Good Manufacturing Practice regulations for foods…'

In the letter from FDA New England Director John R. Marzilli, Cumberland was told its failure to 'have or implement' a seafood HACCP plan means the packaged tuna fish sandwiches it produces are 'adulterated' or impure.

Cumberland was asked to respond to FDA's concerns within 15 working days.

Full post as published by Food Safety News on March 14, 2010 (boomark / email).