Eat your PB!

January 28, 2009

Have you heard some of the mean things being said about peanut butter? If you’re scared by the Salmonella rumors, read on and rest assured that you don’t need to fear your favorite spread.

A member of The National Peanut Board sent me an informative message regarding the PB salmonella outbreak. She let me know that, “Some media is reporting that all peanut butter products are at risk, which is not true. Jars of peanut butter that consumers buy in the stores are safe. The commercial sizes of peanut paste and peanut butter sold through the Peanut Corporation of America were found to be at risk. 99% of all peanut butter sold is NOT sold through Peanut Corporation of America.”

FDA’s website notes that, “Companies all over the country that received product from PCA have issued voluntary recalls of their products. FDA has created a searchable database for these products, which can be found here. Identification of products subject to recall is continuing and this list is updated frequently.”

The long and short of it: Major national brands of jarred peanut butter found in grocery stores are not affected by the PCA recall.

FDA and CDC recommendations for consumers include: • Do not eat products that have been recalled and throw them away in a manner that prevents others from eating them. • To determine if commercially-prepared or manufactured peanut butter/peanut paste-containing products (such as cookies, crackers, cereal, candy and ice cream) are subject to recall, consumers are urged first to visit FDA’s website and check the searchable database of recalled products. • For information on products containing peanut butter from companies not reporting recalls, consumers may wish to consult the company’s website or call the toll-free number listed on most packaging. Information consumers may receive from the companies has not been verified by the FDA. • If consumers cannot determine if their peanut butter, peanut butter/peanut paste-containing products or institutionally-served peanut butter contains PCA peanut butter/peanut paste, FDA recommends that they do not consume those products. • Persons who think they may have become ill from eating peanut butter are advised to consult their health care providers.

So get the facts at FDA’s website and know that It’s safe to eat your peanut butter. Spread the news! (get it?) :P

And incase you haven’t explored their site, The National Peanut Board has a great bunch of recipes like Peanut Butter Mousse Cake and Peanut Mud Pie with Roasted Peanut Brittle.