Kellogg gets federal warning after Listeria found in cookie plant

FDA send a warning letter to Kellogg, indicating a raft of “serious violations of the Current Good Manufacturing Practice regulations” following an inspection to the Augusta site in February 2011.

Listeria was found at fifteen separate locations in the Marvin Griffin Road facility, with almost half found on food contact surfaces such as conveyor mesh and belts. This is not the first time the FDA has taken Kellogg to task over Listeria contamination at one of its plants. In January 2010, it raised concerns over detection of the bacteria at its Eggo Waffle plant, also in Georgia.
Tests showed the strain of pathogen discovered matched those found at the same plant in 2010. This revealed flaws in Kellogg’s cleaning methods at the factory, said the FDA
“The presence of a persistent strain of L. monocytogenes in your facility between January 2010 and February 2011 is significant in that it demonstrates that your cleaning and sanitation efforts were inadequate to remove this organism,” said John Gridley FDA district director in Atlanta.
Swarms of flies were also observed around a drain, near to the flour sock of a mixer and the back panel of a mixer, said federal authorities. Other violations included multiple pipes whose insulation were soaked with condensation and several areas where pooled waste had collected. Pooled condensate was also observed “dripping directly into an open upright mixer bowl”. The pooling of water at the in-feed of one spiral cooker contained “product debris and a black substance”.
The company said it had voluntarily shut down the plant after the FDA visit and completed a comprehensive cleaning exercise and structural improvements to floors and the roof. FDA gives to the company fifteen days to respond to the issues raised in the June 7 warning letter, setting out how it planned to rectify the GMP breaches.

Fuente:http://www.foodqualitynews.com/Public-Concerns/Kellogg-gets-federal-warning-after-Listeria-found-in-cookie-plant

Aporte: María Josefa Henríquez and Maria Patricia Cuevas