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Two Mixes Added to HVP Recall List

By Dan Flynn and Suzanna Schreck

Not all the products containing recalled hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP) have been sent back yet.  Late to the party is MiDAS Foods International, which is recalling its Instant Beef Soup dry mix and Instant Beef Stroganoff sauce mix.

Both products could contain HVP that may be contaminated with Salmonella.

The Oak Park, MI-based MiDAS says it learned from one of its vendors that a flavor it was using its soup mix contained the HVP produced and recalled by Basic Food Flavors in North Las Vegas, NV.

In a statement, MiDAS said testing of the flavor by an independent lab was negative for Salmonella, but the company was proceeding with its own recall notice "for precautionary food safety reasons."

No illnesses have been associated with any of the HVP-related recalls.

The Salmonella problem with HVP at Basic Food Flavors dates back to Sept. 17, 2009.  The company says the contamination was limited to a single 10,000-pound lot.   Food and Drug Administration (FDA) investigators in February found Salmonella inside the North Las Vegas facility and production was halted for a time.

The public learned of the HVP recalls from a March 4 press conference featuring the federal government's top food safety officials from FDA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).  FDA said any food using HVP from Basic Food Flavors as an ingredient would have to recall their products unless the material had been put through a "kill step."

MiDAS mixes are the first HVP-related recall since April 1.  At that time, manufacturers had recalled 177 products containing HVP.  The recall of HVP products is proving to be smaller than the three other major product recalls that FDA has managed during the last two years.  The other major product recalls involved peanuts, pistachios, and dried milk.

The dry soup and dry sauce mixes produced by MiDAS were distributed to food service establishments in Florida and Tennessee.  Retailers sold none.

"This notice is to make consumers who may inadvertently come across a package of this product aware of the recall," MiDAS wrote.

The dry Instant Beef Soup Mix is packaged in brown cardboard cases dimension: 15"x 7.75"x 5.7" with a brown label titled "Instant Beef Soup Mix" and bearing "Code: AS493060"; Mfg. Date: MAR 10, 2010-01 and produced by MiDAS Foods International / American Saucery. The individual units inside the box are 7" x 6.5" white plastic sealed pouches with plain black lettering "Instant Beef Soup" at the top, and the product code "AS493060" in the bottom right of the text.

The dry beef stroganoff mix is packaged in brown cardboard cases dimension: 15"x 7.75"x 5.75" with a white label titled "Instant Beef Stroganoff Sauce" and bearing "Code: AS605010" in the lower right corner. Mfg. Date: JAN 21, 2010-01 and produced by MiDAS Foods International / American Saucery. There is a single, unlabeled clear plastic bag containing the mix inside the box.

The Salmonella organism can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections, especially in children, the elderly, and people with compromised immune systems.  Symptoms include fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain.

While not sold to the public, anyone with a box or package of Instant Beef Soup mix or a package of Beef Stroganoff Sauce mix should return it to the place where it was obtained.  The manufacturer's phone number is 800-328-8632.

Full post as published by Food Safety News on April 29, 2010 (boomark / email).