12/31/14 Health News: Activating hair growth with immune cells ♦ Walmart enhancing poultry safety ♦ Doctored food labels in China ♦ Christmas dinner that left dozens ill, one dead

Activating hair growth by modifying immune cells

How to restore hair loss is a task not undertaken exclusively by beauty practitioners. The discover reveals a novel angle to spur hair follicle growth. This also adds new knowledge to a broader problem: how to regenerate tissues in an adult organism, especially the skin Continue Reading

Walmart enhancing poultry safety measures

Walmart said Thursday it will implement enhanced poultry safety measures for suppliers, designed to further protect customers against food-borne illnesses. The company said all poultry suppliers for its Walmart and Sam’s Club stores must be in compliance with the new requirements by June 2016. Walmart said the new guidelines are in addition to the company’s food safety program … Continue Reading

Subway to investigate allegation on doctored food labels in China

FBR Staff Writer Published 30 December 2014 American fast food restaurant chain Subway has announced an investigation over a media report in China alleging that workers at a Beijing franchise manipulated food labels. The report said that workers in Beijing Subway outlet doctored the expiry and production dates on meat, drink and vegetable products in order to extend the use, … Continue Reading

Lions club says it's not responsible for dinner that left dozens ill, one dead

A club in Nackawic, N.B., is defending its image after a Christmas dinner at the club’s location left more than 30 people ill and one dead. More than 100 people attended the Dec. 5 turkey dinner, which was hosted by a local church. After eating, more than 30 people became sick.  Continue Reading

Whole Foods Market is recalling cheese Due to Listeria

Whole Foods Market is recalling cheese sold in Arizona, California and Hawaii that came from its supplier Bleating Heart Cheeses because it has the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women. Consumers should seek immediate medical care if they develop these symptoms.

The recalled cheese was cut and packaged in clear plastic wrap and sold with Whole Foods Market scale labels. Whole Foods Market decided to recall the cheeses after its supplier, Bleating Heart Cheese, issued a recall due to possible Listeria monocytogenes. The following Bleating Heart Cheese products are included in this recall:

• Shepardista, PLU# 254704, all sell by dates up to and including Jan 20st, 2015
• Goldette Tommette, PLU# 250302, all sell by dates up to and including Jan 20st, 2015
• Fat Bottom girl, PLU# 254705, all sell by dates up to and including Jan 20st, 2015
• Ewelicious, PLU# 299784, all sell by dates up to and including Jan 20st, 2015
• Mixtress, PLU# 299785, all sell by dates up to and including Jan 20st, 2015
• Moolicious, PLU# 299648, all sell by dates up to and including Jan 20st, 2015

No illnesses or infections have been reported to date. Signage is posted to notify customers of this recall, and all affected product has been removed from shelves.

Consumers who have purchased this product from Whole Foods Market stores may bring their receipt to the store for a full refund. Consumers with questions should contact their local store or call 512-477-5566 ext. 20060 between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. EST.

Dog Treats Recalled Due to Salmonella

Jump Your Bones, Inc. of Boca Raton, Florida is voluntarily recalling Jump Your Bones brand name Roo Bites (Cubes) because it has the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella. No pet or consumer illnesses from this product have been reported to date.

Salmonella can affect animals eating the products and there is risk to humans from handling contaminated pet products, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the products or any surfaces exposed to these products.

Healthy people infected with Salmonella should monitor themselves for the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. Rarely, Salmonella can result in more serious ailments, including arterial infections, endocarditis, arthritis, muscle pain, eye irritation, and urinary tract symptoms. Consumers exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare providers.

Pets with Salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting. Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever, and abdominal pain. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.

The affected lots of Jump Your Bones Pet Treats were distributed to retail pet food stores nationwide and through pet food retailers/distributors.

The affected products are sold in Boutique Bags and online stores. The products affected by this recall are only identified with the following UPC codes:

63633010041 for 80g. / 2.82oz. including samples of .32 oz.

Consumers who have purchased the above product of Jump Your Bones, Inc. pet treats are urged to stop feeding them and return product to place of purchase for a full refund or dispose of them immediately. For further information about the recall please call (888) 249-6755 from Monday – Friday 9am – 5PM EST.

Bleating Heart Cheese Recalling More Cheeses

Bleating Heart Cheese is expanding its voluntary recall notice of December 17, 2014 to cover all of its sheep milk, goat milk, water buffalo milk and cow's milk cheese produced between February 14, 2014 (coded as 14–0214) and September 19, 2014 (coded as 14-0919) due to an abundance of caution concerning the possibility of Listeria monocytogenes being present in some cheese (see below for a complete list). The codes on the bottom label of all Bleating Heart cheese represent “Year-Month & Day of the Month” when the cheese was produced. Consumers that still have the recalled Bleating Heart cheese in their refrigerators should discard it in a manner so it is not consumed.  v

1. “Buff Ewe Blue” and “Buff Blue” – natural rind, blue-style cheese, aged 3 – 4 months
2. “Double Down Blue” - natural rind, blue-style cheese, aged 3 - 4 months with a double heart imprint on the rind
3. “Ewelicious Blue” – natural rind, blue-style cheese, aged 2 – 3 months
4. “Fat Bottom Girl” - natural rind, aged 2 – 3 months
5. “Funky Beats” – washed rind, aged 2-3 months. Note: this cheese has been sold out for some time and is not likely to be in the market place
6. “Goldette Tommette” - natural rind, aged 2 – 3 months
7. “Mixtress” - natural rind, aged 2 - 3 months
8. “Moolicious Blue” - natural rind blue-style cheese, aged 3-4 months
9. “Shepherdista” - natural rind, aged 2-3 months

Pictures of all of the cheese labels can be found at the end of this notice.

Listeria monocytogenes is a bacteria which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, pregnant women and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages, stillbirths and fetal infection among pregnant women. Consumers should contact their physician if they exhibit any of the listed symptoms.

The cheeses listed were sold to distributors servicing the California as well as Pennsylvania areas who in-turn sold to retail food shops, restaurants and stores. Anyone that has distributed the cheese identified above needs to immediately notify their customers of the voluntary recall and encourage them to destroy any identified cheese based on instructions from Bleating Heart Cheese. Any of the above cheese still in a distributor’s inventory needs to be isolated/quarantined and prepared for return to Bleating Heart Cheese, which will provide a full refund upon receipt of the cheese and verification of its identity.

The recall is being conducted with the knowledge of the US Food and Drug Administration. If you have any questions or seek additional information, please call 858-472-1754 during our normal hours of operations (Monday-Friday 9:00am-4:00pm PST) or email us at dave@bleatingheart.com.

Chopped Walnuts and Pecan Cookie Pieces Recalled Due to Salmonella

John B. Sanfilippo & Son, Inc. announced today that it is voluntarily recalling Fisher 8 oz. Chopped Walnuts and Fisher 8 oz. Pecan Cookie Pieces packaged in plastic bags because some of these products may be contaminated with Salmonella.

Salmonella is an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis.

Consumers who have recently purchased the items with the BEST BY DATES listed below at stores located in AR, AZ, CO, KS, LA, MO, NM, OK, and TX or online should not consume this product and should return it to the store of purchase for a full refund or replacement. The BEST BY DATES can be found on the back of the bags.

Item Description:

JBSS Item Code	UPC#	BRAND	PRODUCT DESCRIPTION	UNIT WT.	UM	BEST BY DATE
P02352	070690 02360 3	Fisher	Chopped Walnuts	8	oz.	10/31/15 TQ2
P02352	070690 02360 3	Fisher	Chopped Walnuts	8	oz.	11/01/15 TQ1
P02352	070690 02360 3	Fisher	Chopped Walnuts	8	oz.	11/01/15 TQ2
P02352	070690 02360 3	Fisher	Chopped Walnuts	8	oz.	11/03/15 TQ1
P02352	070690 02360 3	Fisher	Chopped Walnuts	8	oz.	11/03/15 TQ2
P02351	070690 02351 1	Fisher	Pecan Cookie Pieces	8	oz.	11/03/15 TQ1
P02351	070690 02351 1	Fisher	Pecan Cookie Pieces	8	oz.	11/03/15 TQ2

###To date, JBSS has not received any reports of illnesses in connection with the items listed above.

This voluntary recall is the result of a routine sampling program conducted by the FDA in the retail marketplace which revealed that a package of Fisher Chopped Walnuts contained Salmonella.

Contact for Consumers:

Consumers or customers who have questions about the above recall may contact John B. Sanfilippo and Son, Inc. Customer Service toll-free at (800) 874-8734 Monday through Friday from 8:15 AM to 5:15 PM Central Time.

Pink’s Ice Cream Recalled Due to Listeria

Pink’s Ice Cream LLC of Seattle, WA is recalling all ice cream flavors produced in 2014 with the exception of Coconut Non-Dairy Frozen Dessert, because it has the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.  Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.

Pink’s Ice Cream was distributed through grocery stores and restaurants around the Puget Sound Area including Uwajimaya and Metropolitan Market in Washington.

The 16 oz. pints of ice cream are sold with a six-digit numerical product code between on the bottom of the product. That six digit code will start with two numbers between 00**** and 52****.  The recall includes all codes within that range with the exclusion of 01**** and 41****.   The table below summarizes the affected products.

Name of Product	Flavors	Size	Production Date	Type of Packaging
Pink’s Ice Cream	Black Sesame, Durian, Green Tea, Mango, Red Bean, Spicy Ginger, Taro, Thai Tea	16 oz	1/1/14-12/21/14	Paper Carton
Pink’s Ice Cream	Black Sesame, Durian, Green Tea, Mango, Red Bean, Spicy Ginger, Taro, Thai Tea	1.0 gal	1/1/14-12/21/14	Plastic Gallon

The recall is the result of contamination found at Snoqualmie Gourmet Ice Cream, Pink’s dairy supplier. A routine sampling revealed traces of Listeria in the finished product and on nearby surfaces at the supplier’s plant.  Pink’s Ice Cream has recalled all products made with potentially contaminated dairy ingredient, sterilized all production surfaces and equipment, and has begun sourcing dairy from an alternative source.

Consumers who have purchased Pink’s Ice Cream, except the non-dairy Coconut, are urged to

return it to the place of purchase for a full refund.  Consumers with questions may contact the company at 206-861-9098 during regular business hours (Monday – Friday 9am-5:00 PST).

Tetrodotoxin Poisoning Outbreak from Imported Dried Puffer Fish

Minneapolis, Minnesota, 2014

Health care providers who work in emergency departments or with persons from countries with a tradition of puffer fish consumption should be aware of the potential public health threat of puffer fish poisoning and should coordinate with their local poison centers and health departments to investigate any suspected cases.

Puffer fish is a highly regulated product in the U.S. due to its potential toxicity yet is a delicacy in many cultures. Health care providers who work in emergency departments or with persons from countries with a tradition of puffer fish consumption should be aware of this potential public health threat and coordinate with their local poison centers and health departments to investigate any suspected cases of puffer fish poisoning to determine the source of the fish, whether it was legally imported, and whether additional contaminated product needs to be removed from commerce.