We are not being peanut butter eaters in our family also. We only keep it around because my daughter loves homemade peanut butter cookies. - 4/2/2009   4:24:57 PM

Sanitization of the workers' hands in the field would serve only to protect the workers; most would wear gloves anyway. Peanuts grow underground and have to be dug from the soil. Contamination probably comes from either a natural organic fertilizer (i.e., manure) or from manure getting into the water supply used to irrigate the fields. This could happen as a result of runoff upstream from a peanut farm after a heavy rain. It's probable that the farmer whose peanuts came from contaminated soil was not responsible for the contaminants entering the ecosystem. After they are dug up, peanuts are dried in the shell and then processed. This is one example of how "organic" and/or "naturally grown" doesn't necessarily equate to "safe to eat." - 1/22/2009   3:08:02 PM

I don't like peanut 'flavored' things (or fruit flavored things, I just like plain CHOCOLATE!!) but I adore peanut butter and bananas. So the only peanut-thing I have in the house is ground peanuts. I used to buy them at the New Yokel where they're ground before your eyes, but my dad ground me two big ziploc-ware boxes (about 12c.) of unsalted peanuts for Christmas so I'm totally stocked. Now, can't wait for the weather to warm up and bananas to get super-cheap again. : ) - 1/21/2009   8:01:05 PM

It seems that a number of people are misunderstanding this recall. The peanut butter affected was only in suppliers to food services and companies that make other products from the peanut butter, not the usual brands that we buy in the store.

I personally only buy a natural peanut butter now anyway.

The person who mentioned the sanitation of the workers in the fields is right on!!! All of the food problems recently are related to fecal contamination of food which goes right to the pickers and possibly to whether the fertilizer is composted previously to being used. If you do not pay attention to sanitation in your fields, your food products will be contaminated!!! - 1/20/2009   11:02:45 AM

We've stopped buying the Jiff's Peanut Butter switching to an all natural form instead. We go over to the All Natural Food Market here in town and can grind up the nuts ourselves while in the store. My family is all convinced that it tastes better any way and you can control how chunky or smooth you want it. Really nice! - 1/19/2009   11:55:41 PM

I've been inconvenienced by a food recall. I appreciate the FDA's diligence - in most cases. - 1/19/2009   10:52:00 PM

I work in a school and stuff like this is so frightening. Our school serves pbj sandwiches. Hopefully it is a short lived problem and corrected quickly. - 1/19/2009   10:43:26 PM

Thanks so much for this info, i love peanut butter and was worried when i heard this news. I usually buy skippy.

Recently there was a cottage cheese recall, and i hadn't heard about it. But fortunately didn't eat any, as soon as i opened mine i could tell it was bad so i returned it to the store where they told me about the recall. I immediately warned everyone i knew and will no longer buy that brand. - 1/19/2009   7:47:04 PM

Ok, now we add peanuts to the list: with beef,
Peanuts- peanut butter
salads-tomatoes
spinach
peppers-
and our pets- dog food. (pesticide in dog food)
So, should cleanliness standards for field workers be in place- bathrooms, washie- handsies? I think so.
Alot of our food - even pet food is imported from China. They have practices and standards different from our own.
Nothing is safe anymore, it seems.
Ok, off my soapbox................. - 1/19/2009   11:04:52 AM

Thank you for this and the related links. I had been all over the internet trying to find information on a snack cracker in my pantry. I know how to get a refund thanks to this article (other sources said "when in doubt, throw it out"). You just saved me $10.00 (yes it was a case from Sam's club), thanks! - 1/19/2009   10:36:44 AM

This is the second time in recent history manufactured peanut butter has had a problem (last time it was Wal-Mart's brand contaminated with E. Coli.) Seems its time to buy raw peanuts and make our own PB! - 1/19/2009   10:29:16 AM

What would life be like without the FDA, think about that!!
They are there for a reason, may not be doing as well as everyone thinks. But think about if there were no recall list, how would the public get much of the needed information, good and bad.
Make your own choices and take your own actions.

Thanks for the update.!! - 1/19/2009   10:10:25 AM

This is scary since I find peanut butter in many snack items that children eat. I work in a daycare and peanut butter can be found and many foods even cereal. We do eat a lot of generic brand peanut butter at home. S o this is helpful to know. - 1/19/2009   8:39:18 AM

Here is a excerpt from the FDA site.

On January 16, PCA expanded its voluntary recall to include all peanut butter produced on or after August 8, 2008, and all peanut paste produced on or after September 26, 2008, in its Blakely, Ga., plant because of potential Salmonella contamination. The product being recalled is sold by PCA in bulk packaging in containers ranging in size from five to 1700 pounds. The peanut paste is sold in sizes ranging from 35-pound containers to product sold by the tanker container. These products are not sold directly to consumers. PCA has stopped all production at its Blakely, Ga. plant as the FDA continues its investigation into the source of the Salmonella contamination. - 1/19/2009   8:31:01 AM

From what I'm hearing and reading PB in jars is much less affected than PB products in snacks like nutty bars and crackers. If at all. Get rid of your PB laden snacks. - 1/19/2009   8:29:22 AM

We threw our peanut butter away the last time there was a problem. It was a 5 pound container we got at Sam's Club. I eat Smucker's Organic now. I'd sure hate to have to give up my peanut butter. I eat peanut butter almost every day.
I use to buy Slim Fast until they had a recall on some of it. Mine wasn't on the recall list, but I was too scared to drink it. I threw it away. I don't think I've bought any since.
- 1/19/2009   6:42:26 AM

This affects elderly and small children, who have less ability to fight off the salmonella. Actually, we have the safest food supply of any country. I hate to deal with getting food from CHINA, since they have such corrupt government officials. That is what I care about. - 1/19/2009   12:40:38 AM

This is really scary. My grandpa up in Brainerd, MN died from salmonella poisoning that he got from eating peanut butter. He was living in a nursing home up there. - 1/18/2009   11:36:19 PM

I not only check the contents of my home, but I also have the responsibility of checking our church's food pantry. - 1/18/2009   11:32:49 PM

Thats really scarry. I had Peanut butter this morning on my toast insted on butter. I know my peanut butter isent effected. I hadent heard of this until right now. I hope people caught it fast and nobody was effected. - 1/18/2009   9:11:37 PM

Never had to deal with a recall, but did have a bad egg once - at least pretty sure it was the egg - was not a pleasant experience!!! - 1/18/2009   8:56:52 PM

Oh my heavens do we need a major overhaul of the way that we grow food in this country. This really makes me mad more than anything. We need much tighter oversight and regulations of the whole food industry. Ugh. - 1/18/2009   8:43:27 PM

I had a jar of the peanut butter that was recalled a while back. We had eaten some of it, but had no problems. Even so, we threw it out and haven't bought it again. - 1/18/2009   7:01:09 PM

I haven't been affected by a food recall, but I have had food poisoning at least three times in the past 25 years, 2 of those times with food provided by an institution; the 3rd (and worst) time with food eaten at a potluck dinner. I'll never forget the night DH and I became ill within 10 minutes of each other at 1:00 a.m. - all I can say is, we were grateful our house had 2 bathrooms, as that's where we spent the next 3 hours! At least 6 people from our group were ill that night, with one person ending up in the hospital. Later, we compared notes to learn the only thing we all ate was the ham a member of our group had first prepared a couple of months earlier, frozen, and then reheated. Lately, several Bootcamp members have commented about having the "flu" or a "stomach virus" - in my mind, they may have food poisoning, and they should mentally review all they ate in the past few days, especially if several members of their family became ill at about the same time. - 1/18/2009   6:52:04 PM

Yes To All Questions. The Beef scare, the tomatoe and the lettuce, and now the peanut better. - 1/18/2009   6:45:09 PM

I only eat the peanut butter I make from peanuts. Thanks for the info though, BETHPROVERBS31, I never thought to question who owns the organic companies. I'll investigate the brands I buy and adjust. Ty, ty, ty. :) - 1/18/2009   6:00:30 PM

Well first of all I don't like peanut butter, but my husband does and he has some of the peanut butter cracker. I immediatly threw them all in the garbage can. Yes when ever there is a recall I check everything to make sure we don't have any of the products in our home. - 1/18/2009   5:59:41 PM

I was not affected by the dogfood scare, because at the time my dog was eating organic dogfood. Not only did Keebler pull their peanutbutter sandwich crackers but so did Little Debbie. - 1/18/2009   4:45:14 PM

I was affected by the pet food scare, I tried "going raw" (after consulting several library books), but my cat watned no part of it. So I began buying "people" tuna for him and searching for a source for taurine (cats need it or they will go blind), but couldn't find any, so I eventually went back to the high-dollar cat food I was buying anyway. The Florida tomato scare...like another of the bloggers who live here, I was eating them anyway. I trust Veggie Wash totally, so I filled my sink with a solution of the Veggie Wash, soaked all my produce for 30 seconds, rinsed scrupulously, and allowed to air dry to racks. I even gave the mushrooms a fast dip and rinse, and let hose dry overnight on racks. I think the biggest problem we face with our produce is, it comes in from other countries that still use pesticides we banned years ago, plus certain ways they fertilize that we don't (don't want to disgust anybody here, but...) If you can grow some of your own produce and trade off with friends, neighbors and church members who do the same thing, you are a lot safer. Between the Hepatrtis A in the scallions a few years back, the tainted Roma tomatoes, and now this...what's a vegetarian to do? To further complicate things, I just learned today the biggest soybean producer is Brazil, and one of the biggest companies down there is Monsanto. folks, Monsanto is a CHEMICAL company! And they're saying what a huge yeild they get; five times bigger than American fields, BECAUSE OF ALL THE CHEMICALS. Now, when you buy a Boca burger, and you think you're doing your body so much good, you may very well be ingesting a bunch of chemicals! - 1/18/2009   3:53:04 PM

Our government needs to get on the ball. They are way too lax on safety. FDA is a major joke. I'm an activist in many things and I have sent petitions regarding these messes. We all need to speak up for our safety!

- 1/18/2009   3:35:05 PM

I eat a "hand made" peanut butter that is only peanuts, no processing or additives at all and the company (Crazy Richard's) makes their own, etc. - 1/18/2009   3:24:59 PM

I was caught in the dog food recall. I threw away all the dog food and started buying a different brand altogether. I have never gone back to that dog food. - 1/18/2009   1:32:39 PM

Rather than condemning some organic products because they are owned by large "unhealthy" food companies, we should encourage those companies to offer even more healthy foods. Wouldn't it be wonderful if those huge companies would turn healthy? Remember, they're the ones with the huge advertising budgets that fill the airways with plugs for their products. Encourage them make and advertise healthy food for a change and support them when they do. - 1/18/2009   12:19:57 PM

It is always wise to pay attention to recalls but I don't think our food is any more contaminated that it ever was. We are just able to detect more problems than in the past. Thank goodness for that. In the past people died of many strange things at a much younger age and most probably it was from food poisoning. - 1/18/2009   10:50:07 AM

RAINMUSIC, Odwalla is owned by the unhealthy food conglomerate Coca-Cola Company, so why should the fact that it was recalled surprise us? Many so-called all natural and organic product companies are owned by huge food conglomerates that do not hold high health standards. For instance, Horizon Organics is owned by Wal-Mart. Truvia is manufactured in cooperation with Coca-Cola Co. PureVia is made in conjunction with Pepsi Co. The list goes on. It pays to know who owns the company manufacturing your so-called all-natural, organic "health" foods. Perhaps Spark can do some research into this and post an article about this very thing, letting us know what huge unhealthy companies own what natural/organic food labels. - 1/18/2009   10:47:04 AM

Processed peanut butter like Jif, Peter Pan, etc. are loaded with artery-clogging hydrogenated fats to make them creamy and are one of the worst foods if you are watching fat/cholesterol intake or have cardiac related problems.

I only eat all-natural organic peanut butter and other non-processed products as much as possible so I can avoid eating something that might make me or my family sick or unhealthy. - 1/18/2009   10:34:06 AM

I work in a school cafeteria, and we have to be extremely careful about what we serve. Our peanut butter was pulled from the menu until we got confirmation as to whether or not what we had received was on the list. Our food service director stays on top of the recalls, and sometimes will know before the health dept. knows. It is very scary when you have 350+ students to feed. - 1/18/2009   10:31:05 AM

Eating organic is no guarantee against infectious diseases like Salmonella and E Coli. I remember a big recall of unpasteurized Odwalla juices some years back. Raw milk can carry all kinds of stuff. - 1/18/2009   10:29:08 AM

One more reason to eat Organic! Thank you Sparkpeople for keeping me updated on the important news. I don't read the paper or listen to the news as often as I should, it's just so darn depressing. I appreciate being updated on importatnt issues. Thank you - 1/18/2009   10:16:07 AM

The food recall regularity due to poisoning is getting more and more frequent, and it's unnerving to say the least. We've been affected in our home.....once by the first PB recall, I got a mild case of the poisoning but was luckily the only PB eater in the house. Again by the salad bags, luckily they were just purchased and not yet opened when the recall was initiated and yet again by the pet food recalls with the same result as the bagged salad. I TRY to buy as locally as I can, living in a rural farming community helps some but when we have frequent flooding as we did this past year it's very difficult. It seems nothing and noone, people or animals, are truly safe.........and not trying to be or sound like an alarmist but I find myself wondering many times where it's all going to end and how.........really scary - 1/18/2009   9:59:34 AM

i ate some austin peanut butter crackers last week right before they were recalled. oh well- i didn't get sick! - 1/18/2009   9:54:32 AM

I am very careful, since one of my daughters got salmonella poisoning which developed an absess on her spleen. The absess burst, destroying part of her spleen. Her spleen was removed in surgery and she spent 2 weeks in hospital.
She's fine now, thankfully!
So PLEASE heed these recalls. - 1/18/2009   9:47:33 AM

I have to be concerned with recalls - and it seems to be a more and more regular thing to be searching my pantry and checking barcodes. I have two small children and an elderly parent living with me - I am very concerned with the amount of recalls these days - I am growing my own vegetables and canning this year to try to relax and not worry as much for my kids safety! - 1/18/2009   9:30:36 AM

So glad I make my own peanut butter. - 1/18/2009   9:27:19 AM

This seems to be happening more and more often. Pretty scary! - 1/18/2009   8:58:35 AM

I have not been affected by this recall or any other recalls. Last year when the tomato scare went on , I live in Florida and had been eating Florida tomatoes every day for months and hadn't been sick so I ignored the call to not eat Florida tomatoes. - 1/18/2009   8:49:36 AM

Have not been affected by a recall, but they seem to be happening more frequently which is scary! - 1/18/2009   8:03:51 AM

These things have always happened and in fact I believe that they are happening less now. The problem is that now if one plant or one field has a problem it can effect people right across the continent (or world). If food was still in more local a single recall would only effect people in a single town or area. - 1/18/2009   7:59:14 AM

I only use Jif. We are not big peanut butter eaters. - 1/18/2009   7:57:09 AM

This is really scarey,, - 1/18/2009   7:16:13 AM