Thread: All peanuts from Texas plant are recalled

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All peanuts from Texas plant are recalled
Dead rodents found at Plainview plant prompt the recall
By JANET ELLIOTT
AUSTIN BUREAU
Feb. 12, 2009, 10:19PM


Richard Porter AP
FOUL FIND: Investigators found dead rodents above the food production area at this Peanut Corp. of America plant in Plainview. 

AUSTIN — Texas health officials ordered a recall Thursday of every product ever shipped from a Plainview peanut processing plant since March 2005 after inspectors discovered the food production area had been contaminated.

Inspectors found dead rodents, rodent excrement and bird feathers in a crawl space above a food production area at the Peanut Corp. of America’s Plainview plant, authorities from the Texas Department of State Health Services said Thursday.

The plant’s air handling system was not completely sealed and was pulling debris from the infested crawl space onto exposed food products in production areas. It was unclear whether products may have reached consumers as distributors took steps to pull items from stores shelves before they could be sold.

Although the plant began operations in March 2005 and employed 30 people, state health inspectors did not visit until last month because they didn’t know about the facility, said Doug McBride, a spokesman for the department.

He said the company failed to apply for a Texas license, which would have triggered an inspection — and inspectors had no way of knowing about it.

“Given the volume, we don’t have the luxury of doing a lot of detective work to find other manufacturers without a license,â€

I am so sick of this!!!!! Any job creation the new stimulus package for more inspectors? More testing? Nope, didn't think so.