CENTRAL NEW YORK -- Concerns about contaminated peanut butter are spreading across the country and now local school districts are taking notice.
At Tully Elementary School, they're moving quickly, sifting through their food supply to weed out anything that may be tainted. "The people who are responsible for food safety in the school districts are all over this," said Jamie Rodems, Business Administrator for Tully Schools. "We take any report of this stuff seriously and immediately go check our inventory to make sure the stuff that we have in inventory is ok," he said.
General Mills Inc. and grocers Kroger Co., Safeway Inc. and Meijer Inc. have joined the growing list of food companies and retailers pulling items with peanut butter amid a salmonella outbreak that has killed at least six people and sickened more than 470 others in 43 states. Supermarket chain Wegmans is recalling ice cream containing peanut butter. Perry's Ice Cream Co. of Akron, NY, is among those recently issuing recalls. The Food and Drug Administration has traced the outbreak to a Georgia plant owned by Peanut Corporation of America, which manufactures peanut butter and peanut paste for distribution to institutions and food companies.
The government is advising consumers to avoid eating cookies, cakes, ice cream and other foods containing peanut butter. Most peanut butter sold in jars at grocery stores appears to be safe.
Most school districts we contacted use USDA commodity peanut butter, which is not being recalled. But a few districts carry other products containing peanut butter and they're pulling them just in case. "We got an email from OGS this morning, saying the peanut product from the manufacturer that was having problems were not part of our government foods that we get and just as a precaution, we pulled a peanut product ice cream," Rodems said.
The Liverpool school district, for example, removed all Perry's Ice Cream products containing peanut butter as well as any snack items that contain peanut butter. Baldwinsville schools pulled Perry's Ice Cream. So did Solvay along with peanut butter crackers. Sandy Creek schools stopped serving all peanut butter until further notice. As a precaution, Oswego removed Perry's ice cream peanut butter crunch bars along with peanut butter bars produced by Little Debbie, which aren't on the list. The Fulton school district isn't serving any peanut butter sandwiches.
Local school districts say it's better safe than sorry. They're pulling any recalled peanut products and promise to keep a close eye on the situation.
Salmonella, a bacteria, is the most common cause of food poisoning in the U.S., causing diarrhea, cramping and fever. On Sunday, Peanut Corp. expanded its own recall to all peanut butter and peanut paste produced since July 1 at its plant in Blakely, Ga. The recalled products were distributed to institutions, food service industries and private label food companies in 24 states.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
