wakingtimes--2019-12-26--As Fracking Companies Face Bankruptcy, U.S. Regulators Enable Firms to Duck Cleanup Costs

In over their heads with debt, U.S. shale oil and gas firms are now moving from a boom in fracking to a boom in bankruptcies. This trend of failing finances has the potential for the U.S. public, both at the state and federal levels, to be left on the hook for paying to properly shut down and clean up even more drilling sites.  Expect these companies to try reducing their debt through the process of bankruptcy and, like the coal industry, attempting to get out of environmental and employee-related financial obligations.  In October, EP Energy — one of the largest oil producers in the Eagle Ford Shale region in Texas — filed for bankruptcy because the firm couldn’t pay back almost $5 billion in debt, making it the largest oil and gas bankruptcy since 2016.  EP Energy hasn’t produced a profit since 2014 and Bloomberg reported that the company would need oil to be at “a price closer to $70 per barrel” for EP to be profitable. Oil has not come close to averaging over $70 a barrel since 2014.  Despite its financial struggles at current low oil prices, the company plans to continue operating after restructuring and eliminating up to $3 billion in debt. However, EP has not identified any funds that it would be setting aside for well cleanup, which is not unusual for an oil and gas company.  In response, as part of the bankruptcy proceedings, the U.S. Department of the Interior filed a document arguing that EP Energy is still responsible for its obligations to assure the “decommissioning, plugging, and abandonment” of any of the EP Energy wells that are located on leased federal and tribal lands.  Ideally, that would mean EP Energy sets aside funds for the proper cleanup and end-of-life processes for its oil and gas wells, which number more than 800 in the Eagle Ford region.  However, the federal government hasn’t even named a number yet for how much that should be. The Bureau of Land Management and Bureau of Indian Affairs “are currently still assessing the status of reclamation and plugging and abandonment obligations across the Debtors’ onshore federal and Indian leases,” writes the Interior Department.  The federal government is only getting around to assessing EP Energy’s potential liabilities once the firm is already in the bankruptcy process, revealing one of the flaws in the current system. Federal and state governments have not been holding fracking companies fully liable for the environmental damage and cleanup costs of their drilling activity.  Joshua Caleb Macey, a visiting assistant professor at Cornell law school who specializes in bankruptcy and energy law, told DeSmog that the situation with EP Energy was “frustrating and completely normal.”  As I’ve reported before, oil and gas companies are legally required to hold a certain amount of funds to pay for well cleanup costs, a process known as bonding that varies by state and for public lands.  Because companies are rarely required to have those funds available before they start drilling (and thanks to industry-friendly regulators and politicians), in reality oil and gas companies can walk away from cleanup obligations with relative ease, which has become the pattern for bankrupt coal companies.  Federal and state regulators have been failing to require companies to fully fund expected cleanup liabilities, which helps mask the true cost of oil and gas production. Passing environmental cleanup costs on to the taxpayer amounts to a backdoor subsidy for the oil and gas industry.  Requiring oil and gas companies to pay for shutting down and cleaning up wells would greatly increase the cost of drilling for many oil and gas wells. The fracking industry already can’t make money pumping fossil fuels out of shale in the U.S., and that’s without these firms coming even close to fully funding their cleanup costs.  However, more state governments are realizing the scale of this problem and starting to look at increasing and enforcing bonding requirements for oil and gas well cleanup. However, in oil-rich places like Alberta, Canada, and Alaska, regulators are realizing that the money just isn’t there.  In 2018, the natural gas driller Amaroq Resources acquired the Nicolai Creek assets in southwest Alaska from the bankrupt Aurora Gas. This transaction was delayed when the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (AOGCC) announced $7 million in bonding required for the gas wells associated with the purchase. This is the point where the state government had the power to make Amaroq provide adequate bonding for well cleanup.  The AOGCC then agreed to reduce that amount to $200,000 and the deal went ahead.  Since that deal, the commission increased the minimum statewide bonding level to $400,000 per well for the first one to 10 wells. Amaroq would be required to abide by these new regulations and has appealed this decision. Company president Scott Pfoff explained that these new bonding requirements make the business “uneconomic.”  And that is the reality. If oil and gas companies were required to pay for the full end-of-life cost of their wells, much of their inventory becomes uneconomic. This is where taxpayers come in.  Fracking Industry Wants to Dump Wastewater in Streams and Rivers to Save Money  Failure to require adequate bonding for oil and gas cleanup costs is just one of many backdoor government subsidies for the oil and gas industry. The failure to regulate flaring and venting of the potent greenhouse gas methane during oil drilling is another example.  Fracking firms, which spend a lot of borrowed money to pump out a lot of oil and gas for not much (or any) profit, are experiencing a collapse in financing. Thanks to the industry’s failed business model, these companies are desperate for ways to cut costs.  One of the major costs associated with hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is acquiring, pumping and disposing of water, which, after a driller is finished with it, typically contains corrosive levels of salts and contaminants including naturally occurring radioactive materials, chemicals and oil residues. This area has become a major target for the industry to save money.  As The Washington Post pointed out in 2015 (and as I highlighted last year), when it comes to fracked shale oil and gas production, “currently there is no way to treat, store, and release the billions of gallons of wastewater at the surface.” The industry’s current range of (legal) approaches to disposing of its massive amounts of wastewater involves injecting it underground, which in some cases is tied to increased earthquake activity, using it to irrigate crops or de-ice roads, and sending it to municipal water treatment plants lacking equipment to properly treat it.  Treating oil and gas drilling wastewater is possible, but expensive. As S&P Global Platts recently reported, according to a study by the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers and Independent Petroleum Association of America, for Permian drillers in Texas, “Economically, treatment costs must come down.  With this glut of wastewater combined with high costs, the industry is looking for a cheap alternative. The latest preferred approach seems to be lobbying governments to change the rules to allow dumping wastewater with limited treatment into rivers and streams.  In November, E&E News reported that there’s movement to allow or expand such wastewater dumping in Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Pennsylvania, all states with major fracking industries. “Within a year, Oklahoma could get approval from EPA to start issuing permits that will allow the oil industry to dispose of briny oil field waste in waterways,” E&E wrote.  As space for injection wells becomes scarce, the industry hopes to dump its wastewater in streams and rivers, once again passing on potential environmental and financial liabilities to the public.  A 2017 working group looking for alternatives for Oklahoma oil field wastewater (also known as “produced water”) found “the most cost-effective means of reducing disposal is for oil companies to treat and clean that produced water so it can be reused for things like fracking,” reported NPR’s StateImpact Oklahoma.  However, recycling produced water to again frack wells results in more toxic produced water, which can’t be recycled indefinitely. With injection wells increasingly unable to handle the volume of water produced by the industry, shale firms have been seeking cheap alternative disposal methods, including dumping the water in rivers and streams.  However, the 2017 analysis concluded that treating produced frack water to the point it could be safely dumped into rivers or used to irrigate agriculture wasn’t economically viable.  Owen Mills, the director of water planning for the Oklahoma Water Resources Board, explained to StateImpact Oklahoma why this wasn’t an option for the industry: “It’s incredibly expensive to do that and it takes a lot of energy.”  To properly treat the fracking wastewater to the point it is no longer a threat to human health and the environment would be incredibly expensive, and that is why the industry is lobbying to change the rules about disposing its wastewater. If it succeeds, expect the eventual clean up costs — also incredibly expensive — to be billed to the American public.  Justin Mikulka is a freelance writer, audio and video producer living in Albany, NY. He has a degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Cornell University. You can follow him in Twitter at https://twitter.com/JustinMikulka  **This article was published on DeSmogBlog.com.**  Like Waking Times on Facebook. Follow Waking Times on Twitter.


eveningstandard--2019-02-26--Marks amp Spencer poised to seal Ocado deal to create 18 billion joint venture

Marks & Spencer poised to seal Ocado deal to create £1.8 billion joint venture

Marks & Spencer and online retailer Ocado on Tuesday confirmed plans for a ground-breaking joint venture first revealed by the Evening Standard.  M&S will pay Ocado between £800 million and £900 million for a 50% stake in the new concern, giving it a food delivery service for the first time, according to sources close to the deal.  The two firms - which have been in frantic talks for the past month over the tie-up - admitted the talks following the Standard’s story.  Shares in Ocado spiked 10%, or 92p, tp 978p, with Marks & Spencer up 3% to 303p following the news.  The two firms have been in frantic talks for the past month over the tie-up.  Effectively Ocado will be split in two, satisfying the desires of chief executive and co-founder Tim Steiner to focus on licensing its tech with retailers around the world. Over the past year the firm has struck licensing deals with retailers in Sweden, the US and Canada, transforming the share price and putting a £6 billion valuation on the company.  Ocado and M&S have been racing towards a deal before March 1, the deadline for Ocado to trigger an 18-month break clause with Waitrose, its supply partner for two decades. Goldman Sachs is advising Ocado, while Rothschild is in M&S’s corner.  With Ocado retaining its intellectual property, the deal effectively puts a price tag of up to £1.8 billion on the online retailer’s 721,000 active customers in M&S chairman Archie Norman’s first major strategic move since joining the firm.  One source said: “The question here is what has Archie actually bought? M&S is buying customers from Ocado, but those customers think they are Waitrose customers. And how is John Lewis [Waitrose’s parent] going to respond to the loss of those customers?” John Lewis has invested heavily in its own Waitrose.com delivery service in recent years, while its relationship with Ocado has been struck by regular rows.  It is understood the deal is structured as a joint venture to avoid legal complications with Ocado’s other supermarket partners — M&S’s main rival Waitrose, as well as Morrisons.  Questions also remain over how M&S, burdened with debts of £1.8 billion, will fund the huge cash injection into the joint venture, with speculation focusing on a cash call on shareholders. The new venture is unnamed as yet.  The talks have come against the backdrop of a serious fire at Ocado’s distribution centre at Andover, one of its four UK centres which handles around 10% of customer orders.


sottnet--2019-02-10--Venezuelas oil giant PDVSA reportedly moves joint ventures accounts to Russias Gazprombank

Venezuela's oil giant PDVSA reportedly moves joint ventures' accounts to Russia's Gazprombank

Amid the tightening noose of US sanctions, Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA is reportedly moving bank accounts of its joint ventures with foreign companies to Russia's Gazprombank, Reuters reports, citing documents and sources.Customers of PDVSA's joint ventures with US-based Chevron Corp, France's Total SA, Norway's Equinor and other projects with foreign companies have reportedly been instructed to deposit their payments into Russia-based bank accounts following the latest crippling round of Washington's sanctions, Reuters reports.Imposed on January 28, the fresh round of sanctions are aimed at cutting the government of Nicholas Maduro off from oil proceeds, after Washington recognized the self-proclaimed 'interim' president Juan Guaido and claimed that Venezuela's state funds and profits should be controlled by the 'legitimate government.'The state oil giant has also been urging its foreign partners to make formal decisions on whether they want to bow to US pressure and bail out or preserve stakes in the joint projects and continue their business in Venezuela, the agency reports.Besides dozens of joint ventures with Western companies, PDVSA also has many projects with Russian companies and Chinese investors, who, according to some assessments, might lose the most from US economic pressure on the Latin American country."We stress that no new accounts [for PDVSA] have been opened," the bank said, adding that it doesn't plan to do so in the future.In addition to $7 billion of the assets of PDVSA -and of its US subsidiary Citgo- that Washington seized "on behalf of Venezuelan people," the US expects its sanctions to affect some $11bn-worth of the country's exports in 2019. Venezuela is home to the world's largest oil reserves, and oil sales account for 98 percent of export earnings and as much as 50 percent of its GDP.Dispelling the Trump administration's hopes that Maduro's government would quickly run out of cash and crumble under pressure from the opposition and the US-led international ' regime change ' endeavor, the state company has vowed to diversify its sales and reroute exports to customers, particularly those in Europe and Asia, who are not afraid of Washington's unilateral sanctions.


sputnik--2019-02-09--Venezuelas PDVSA Transfers Joint Ventures Accounts to Gazprombank - Reports

Venezuela's PDVSA Transfers Joint Ventures' Accounts to Gazprombank - Reports

In January, the US State Department announced that Washington had frozen $7 billion in assets belonging to PDVSA in order to make some of the money available to Venezuela's self-proclaimed acting president, Juan Guaido.


sputnik--2019-02-17--Riyadhs SAMI Agrees to Joint Venture With French Naval Group to Build Warships

Riyadh's SAMI Agrees to Joint Venture With French Naval Group to Build Warships

"The joint venture will design, build and maintain military ships, which will make a significant contribution to the further expansion of the capabilities and combat readiness of the Royal Saudi Navy", SAMI CEO Andreas Schwer said, commenting on the deal.  Schwer noted that SAMI would be the majority shareholder in the joint venture.  The signing ceremony of the agreement, which provides for the construction of warships, frigates and corvettes, was held on the sidelines of the IDEX-2019 defense exhibition in Abu Dhabi.  SAMI was established in 2017 to develop the Saudi military industry, and aims to produce domestically half of the weapons needed by the kingdom by 2030, according to the kingdom’s economic development plan initiated by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.  According to the Spiegel magazine, France and Germany have agreed a common approach to exports of weapons they have been building together. The deal was reportedly struck in mid-January and complements a general pact on bilateral ties signed in Aachen later that month. In particular, the document provides France with more leeway in choosing arms buyers after the two EU countries clashed previously over exports to third countries.  Macron’s stance reportedly could also be connected with the 2015 Mistrals case, when Paris terminated the contract for helicopter carriers that were to be delivered to Russia amid the Ukraine crisis. These ships were finally sold to Egypt, but the operation was very expensive for France, also in terms of image as a reliable international business partner.  READ MORE: Guess Where One of Mistrals Built for Russia Was Allegedly Spotted?


sputnik--2019-03-11--Nissan Renault May Close Dutch Joint Venture After Ex-CEOs Arrest- Reports

Nissan, Renault May Close Dutch Joint Venture After Ex-CEO's Arrest- Reports

The Amsterdam-based joint venture, Renault-Nissan B.V. was chaired by Ghosn, until he was taken into custody in November last year, the Kyodo news agency said. Nissan and Renault also reportedly launched a joint probe concerning the possible involvement of the co-venture in any financial fraud.  The report comes after a court in Tokyo ruled to release Ghosn on bail of 1 billion yen (about $9 million) last week.  Ghosn and Greg Kelly, his right-hand man, were arrested in Tokyo on 19 November on suspicions of misreporting Ghosn’s earnings to Nissan over a five-year period from 2010. Ghosn has denied all accusations brought against him.  Following the arrest, Nissan removed Ghosn from the post of its chairman. On 25 December, Kelly was released on bail.  In January, Ghosn resigned as chairman and CEO of Renault, which prompted the French automaker to conduct a management reshuffle.


sputnik--2019-07-02--Rheinmetall BAE Systems Announce Joint Venture to Build Land Combat Systems - Statement

Rheinmetall, BAE Systems Announce Joint Venture to Build Land Combat Systems - Statement

"Rheinmetall and BAE Systems have today launched a new, independent UK-based joint venture (JV) for military vehicle design, manufacture and support – known as Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land (RBSL) [...] RBSL intends to play a major role in manufacturing the Boxer 8x8 for the British Army’s Mechanized Infantry Vehicle (MIV) program and other strategic combat vehicle programs, while also providing support to the British Army’s in-service bridging and armored vehicle fleets", the release said.  RBSL will combine Rheinmetall’s broader military vehicle technologies with BAE Systems’ experience in producing combat systems including Trojan, Terrier, Warrior, military bridging and the AS90 self-propelled artillery system, the release added.  According to The Defense Post, the British Army rejoined the Boxer program in March 2018 and intends to make an initial purchase of 500 vehicles.  Under the agreement, Rheinmetall purchased a 55 percent stake in BAE’s combat vehicle business, with the British company retaining 45 percent. Regulatory approval for the joint venture was reportedly granted on 13 June.


tass--2019-03-15--Gazprombank sells indirect stake in joint venture with PDVSA

MOSCOW, March 15. /TASS/. Russia’s Gazprombank has sold its stake in Petrozamora, a joint venture with Venezuela’s state-run oil and gas company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), a company spokesman told TASS on Thursday.  "The bank has fully withdrawn from holding an indirect stake in Petrozamora, the details of the deal are not disclosed," the source said.  A source in Russia’s financial circles told TASS that Gazprombank, Russia’s third largest lender in terms of assets, currently has no investment in any project in Venezuela.  Reuters earlier wrote citing own sources that Gazprombank held a minority stake in a company named GPB Global Resources, which in turn owns 40% of Petrozamora. PDVSA owns the remaining 60% in Petrozamora.  Gazprombank and PDVSA set up Petrozamora in 2012 to develop oil fields in Venezuela.  On March 11, the US Treasury added the Russian-Venezuelan Eurofinance Mosnarbank to the sanction list due to the situation in Venezuela. The Treasury accused the bank of supporting the regime of the president of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, whose regime "has profited off of the suffering of the Venezuelan people."  On March 12, it became known that VTB bank would transfer its stake in Eurofinance Mosnarbank to Russia’s Federal Property Management Agency. However, head of VTB, Andrei Kostin, even before the introduction of the US sanctions, announced VTB’s plans to withdraw from the bank’s capital.  Eurofinance Mosnarbank is 49.99% owned by the Venezuelan national development fund Fonden S.A., while 25% plus 1 share each are owned by Gazprombank (and its subsidiary Novfintech) and VTB (and its foreign structures VTB Bank and ITC Consultants).  In other media


tass--2019-03-22--Siemens and Gazprom Energoholding sign memorandum on joint venture

SAINT PETERSBURG, March 22. / TASS /. Siemens and Energoholding LLC have agreed to set up a joint venture, the Siemens press service said on Friday.  "In development of the strategic cooperation agreement, Gazprom Energoholding and Siemens have signed a memorandum of intent to create a joint venture. The parties agreed that the priority activity of the joint venture will be the production of vacuum generator devices (VSU) and high-tech components to them," the press release said.  VGU devices are used in the construction and technological modernization of generating facilities.  The parties, according to the document, will create a working group to prepare a project plan for creating a joint venture. We are discussing the possibility of organizing the production of equipment in the Russian Federation with a localization level of at least 50% by 2020 with the possibility of increasing to 75% by 2022.  New production can be launched on the basis of the Siemens assembly shop in Dubna near Moscow. The company will be engaged in the design, installation, commissioning of vacuum generator switches and provide them with the necessary service support. It is also planned to create a training center for training specialists in the operation of VSU.  In other media


theduran--2019-02-10--Venezuelas oil giant PDVSA moves joint ventures accounts to Russias Gazprombank

Venezuela’s oil giant PDVSA moves joint ventures’ accounts to Russia’s Gazprombank

Amid the tightening noose of US sanctions, Venezuela’s state oil company PDVSA is reportedly moving bank accounts of its joint ventures with foreign companies to Russia’s Gazprombank, Reuters reports, citing documents and sources.  Customers of PDVSA’s joint ventures with US-based Chevron Corp, France's Total SA, Norway's Equinor and other projects with foreign companies have reportedly been instructed to deposit their payments into Russia-based bank accounts following the latest crippling round of Washington’s sanctions, Reuters reports.  Imposed on January 28, the fresh round of sanctions are aimed at cutting the government of Nicholas Maduro off from oil proceeds, after Washington recognized the self-proclaimed ‘interim’ president Juan Guaido and claimed that Venezuela’s state funds and profits should be controlled by the ‘legitimate government.’  The state oil giant has also been urging its foreign partners to make formal decisions on whether they want to bow to US pressure and bail out or preserve stakes in the joint projects and continue their business in Venezuela, the agency reports.  Besides dozens of joint ventures with Western companies, PDVSA also has many projects with Russian companies and Chinese investors, who, according to some assessments, might lose the most from US economic pressure on the Latin American country.  “We stress that no new accounts [for PDVSA] have been opened,” the bank said, adding that it doesn’t plan to do so in the future.  In addition to $7 billion of the assets of PDVSA –and of its US subsidiary Citgo– that Washington seized “on behalf of Venezuelan people,” the US expects its sanctions to affect some $11bn-worth of the country’s exports in 2019. Venezuela is home to the world’s largest oil reserves, and oil sales account for 98 percent of export earnings and as much as 50 percent of its GDP.  Dispelling the Trump administration’s hopes that Maduro's government would quickly run out of cash and crumble under pressure from the opposition and the US-led international ‘regime change’ endeavor, the state company has vowed to diversify its sales and reroute exports to customers, particularly those in Europe and Asia, who are not afraid of Washington’s unilateral sanctions.  For more stories on economy & finance visit RT's business section


theindependent--2019-02-26--Marks amp Spencer holding talks with Ocado over joint venture

Marks & Spencer holding talks with Ocado over joint venture

Marks & Spencer has confirmed that it is in talks with Ocado regarding a tie-up.  M&S said that there was "no certainty" that the discussions would result in an agreement but shares in both companies rose after the news.  Ocado shares 12.5 per cent before lunchtime ahile M&S was up 4 per cent.  M&S will pay Ocado between £800m and £900m for a 50 per cent stake in the new joint venture, with an official announcement to come as soon as tomorrow, according to the Evening Standard.  The deal will reportedly split Ocado in two and values the online grocer's 721,000 customers at around £1.8bn.  Marks & Spencer chairman Archie Norman has been attempting to turn around the retailer which faces stiff competition from cheaper rivals and a deteriorating outlook on the high street.  If the deal goes through M&S could buy distribution centres, delivery vans and lorries from the online food retailer.  Ocado has made rapid recent progress in the online grocery market but suffered a devastating fire at its high-tech Andover warehouse earlier this month.  Ocado shares fell 8 per cent following the announcement of a potential slowdown until it can shift operations to other locations.  The warehouse provides around a tenth of Ocado’s capacity, processing more than 30,000 orders a week.  Ocado said the shutdown means there will be a “constraint on our ability to meet our growing customer demand”.  Sophie Lund-Yates, Equity Analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown: “Investors will be breathing a sigh of relief on the back of this announcement, even though a deal isn’t definite. It’s enough to know Ocado has the interest of one of the biggest retail names in the UK, following the devastating fire at the Andover warehouse earlier this month.  The accident sent shockwaves through the share price, because Ocado’s future rests on its ability to sign deals to build robotic warehouses for other retailers. Ocado’s current share price is still lofty, and that means investors are expecting big things, considering the group is yet to make a meaningful profit – hopes are pinned on some impressive revenue growth in the medium term.  So to hear M&S is sniffing around is welcome news indeed, and if an agreement is announced, it would be a real boost for the group. Ocado still offers an exciting and unique product, which should mean the future’s bright.”  We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form your own view.  At The Independent, no one tells us what to write. That’s why, in an era of political lies and Brexit bias, more readers are turning to an independent source. Subscribe from just 15p a day for extra exclusives, events and ebooks – all with no ads.


bearingarms--2019-03-01--Product Recall Winchester 130 Grain FMJ 38 Special Ammo

Product Recall: Winchester 130 Grain FMJ .38 Special Ammo

Nothing sucks quite as much as a product recall, especially if it’s for something you own.  The latest comes from Winchester.  Olin Winchester, LLC (“Winchester”) is recalling three (3) lots of 38 Special 130 Grain Full Metal Jacket centerfire ammunition. Winchester has determined the above lots of 38 Special ammunition may contain incorrect powder charges. Ammunition with excessive powder charges may cause firearm damage, rendering it inoperable, and subjecting the shooter and bystanders to a risk of serious personal injury or death. DO NOT USE WINCHESTER® 38 SPECIAL 130 GRAIN SYMBOL USA38SPVP WITH LOT NUMBERS KF21, KL30 or KM52. The ammunition Lot Number is ink stamped inside the right tuck flap of the 100-round carton as indicated here. The symbol is printed above the UPC bar code. To determine if your ammunition is subject to this notice, review the Symbol and Lot Number. If it is Symbol USA38SPVP with Lot Number KF21, KL30 or KM52, immediately discontinue use and contact Winchester toll-free at 844-653-8358 for free UPS pick-up of the recalled ammunition. This notice applies only to Symbol USA38SPVP with Lot Numbers KF21, KL30 and KM52.  Other Symbol or Lot Numbers are not subject to this recall. If you have any questions concerning this 38 Special centerfire ammunition recall please call toll-free 844-653-8358, write to Winchester (600 Powder Mill Road, East Alton, IL 62024 Attn: USA38SPVP Recall), or visit our website at www.winchester.com. We apologize for this inconvenience.  Obviously, if you have any of this ammo, contact Winchester immediately. The last thing you want to do is turn your revolver into an expensive paperweight. Had a buddy do that with handloads once, and he was less than pleased, so do yourself a favor and try not to share his pain.  And let’s be honest, we all know he was lucky that damaging his gun was all that happened to him. He just as easily could have blown his hand off, or worse.  I can hear some of you now, though. “I’ve been using this stuff for a while now, and it’s been all good.”  Sure, that may be true…for now. How many shots with way too hot of a load does it take to screw up your day? If you think it takes more than one, you’re oh-so-very wrong. Don’t try to John Wayne it on this stuff, folks. While it’s likely that most of these loads are good to go, enough haven’t been that Winchester figured it needed to issue a product recall.  If you’ve got any Winchester white box at home for .38 Special, go and check it as soon as possible. If it’s a box of this ammo, act accordingly. The life, hands, and gun you save may well be your own. More than that, though, it may well be the hand and life of a loved one who is shooting your gun with the ammo you failed to check out.  Let that sink in for a moment.


birminghammail--2019-07-20--Huge product recall from shops including Tesco Morrisons Sainsburys and Iceland

Huge product recall from shops including Tesco, Morrisons, Sainsbury's and Iceland

A number of products have been recalled over the last month after the  Food Standards Agency (FSA) issued a number of allergy and food alerts.  Supermarket giants Tesco, Morrisons, Sainsbury's and Iceland all have products included in the recall, reports Liverpool Echo .  In all cases, customers who've bought any of these products are being urged not to use them and to return them to the store they purchased them from.  Here are the products that have been recalled.  Tesco's recalling Tesco Two British Cheese Burgers with Buns because they contain sesame which isn't mentioned on the label.  This means the product is a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy to sesame.  If you've bought the above product and have an allergy to sesame, don't eat it.  Instead, return it to the store where it was bought for a full refund.  Denny is recalling Denny Black Pudding because the product may contain small pieces of blue plastic.  The presence of plastic makes this product unsafe to eat.  Britvic PLC is recalling selected Robinson's Fruit Shoot Apple and Blackcurrant bottles as a precautionary measure because of a small number of reports that the spout within the sports bottle cap may become detached unexpectedly, which may present a safety risk.  The product was sold as multipacks (24 bottles) in Tesco and Costco, and as single bottles in McDonald's, betweenJune 22 and 28.  Windmill Organic Ltd is recalling organic amisa lactose free rice milk chocolate rice cakes because they contain milk which isn't mentioned on the label.  This means the product is a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents.  If you've bought the above product and have an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents, don't eat it.  Instead return it to the store where it was bought for a full refund.  Tan Y Castell is recalling Chocolate Chip Griddles because they may contain milk which isn't mentioned on the label.  This means the product is a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents.  If you've bought the above product and have an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents, don't eat it.  Instead return it to the store where it was bought for a full refund.  Iceland's recalling 60 Crispy Chicken Dippers as some packs may contain pieces of hard plastic.  The presence of plastic makes this product unsafe to eat.  If you've bought any of the above product don't eat it.  Instead, return it to the store where it was bought for a full refund.  Shazans Foods is recalling Shazans 10 Bitesize Punjabi Samosas because of a packaging error.  Some packets contain Paneer Tikka Samosas, which contain milk, which isn't mentioned on the label.  This means the product is a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents.  If you have bought the above product and have an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents, don't eat it.  Instead return it to the store where it was bought for a full refund.  Co-op's Veg Taster contains fish, which isn't declared on the label and means the product is a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy to fish.  Customers who have bought this product are requested not to consume the product and should return it to the store where they bought it for a full refund.  Yorkshire Provender are recalling the above affected product Yorkshire Provender Rustic Vegetable Broth with Kale, Lentils and Quinoa Soup as a small number of pots have been packed with a different soup that contains milk, which isn't declared on the packaging.  Please don't consume this product if you have an allergy to milk, return the product to store of purchase for a full refund. No receipt is required.  No other date codes or Yorkshire Provender products are affected by this recall.  Leonidas boxed assortment of Belgian chocolates may contain varieties of chocolates that contain sesame seeds and nuts which aren't declared on the label of some boxes.  The assortments are made up of individual chocolates packed in-store in boxes that have the incorrect label.  This means that these products are a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy to sesame and/or nuts.  Leonidas has withdrawn the affected products from its stores.  Heera Golden Sultanas are being recalled because sulphur dioxide hasn't been declared on the packaging.  P & B Foods Ltd is recalling Heera Chilli Powder Extra Hot because salmonella has been found in the product.  Symptoms caused by salmonella usually include fever, diarrhoea and abdominal cramps.  Homeland By Products Ltd is recalling three batches of frozen raw pet food because salmonella has been found in the products  No other Homeland By Products Ltd products are known to be affected.

newsdesk@birminghamlive.co.uk (Lottie Gibbons, Katie Brooks)


themanchestereveningnews--2019-03-31--Product recalls this month from Asda Lidl Argos Ikea and more

Product recalls this month from Asda, Lidl, Argos, Ikea and more

Asda, Lidl, Argos, Ikea are just some of the names included in the latest product recalls .  The products have been removed from sale according to the Food Standards Agency and Trading Standards who issue recalls on products that should not be sold.  For all items customers are advised to stop using them straight away and return them to point of purchase.  Reasons for the recalls include undeclared ingredients and possible traces of plastic in food items and potential injury risk in other products.  Graze is recalling its Sea Salt and Vinegar Veg Crunchers because it has been incorrectly labelled as suitable for vegans, however the product contains milk.  This then forms a risk to anyone with an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents.  Those who have purchased the product can contact Graze for a replacement by sending a photo of the batch code on the packaging to: hello@graze.com or Graze, Palm Court, 4 Heron Square, Richmond, TW9 1EW.  Graze is also advising customers to contact the relevant allergy support organisations, which will tell their members about the recall.  Argos is recalling a range of its goose feather and down pillows, which are part of its Argos Home collection.  Routine testing discovered that the pillow did not meet the required level of fire and safety standards.  Customers should stop using the pillow and return it to an Argos store for a full refund of £20. Proof of purchase is not needed.  Argos Home is recalling its own range of cafetière's due to inconsistent glass thickness which makes these products susceptible to breakage and could result in injury.  The products are the Argos Home three and eight cup cafetières:  Cat no. 8477305 - three cup cafetière - £7    Cat no. 8479176 - eight cup cafetière - £10  Customers who have purchased the cafetière must stop using them immediately and return them to an Argos store where they are entitled to a full refund.  TK Maxx and Homesense are recalling the Westlab Himalayan Salt Lamp due to a potential safety concerns which affects one batch.  It has identified that an issue with one of the electrical components may pose a risk of an electric shock.  The product was being sold at stores in the UK and Ireland in November and December 2018 and January 2019.  If purchased, customers are advised to using it immediately and return to any TK Maxx or Homesense store in the UK or ROI for a full refund.  The above stores are recalling its Star Wars Holopane 25 Lightbox as it may pose a risk of electric shock.  The recall includes all four designs of the product - Darth Vader, Stormtrooper, Chewbacca and Rey - and were on sale in TK Maxx stores in December 2018 and January 2019.  The safety concern applied to the blue 'GaoLe' branded AAA batteries that were supplied with the product as it was found that they may leak and subsequently pose a safety risk.  The above product is being recalled as it has been identified that they do not comply with the UK Furniture and Furnishings (Fire Safety) Regulations and can therefore pose a greater risk in the event of a fire.  The recall applies to items bought since May 1 2017 from a John Lewis & Partners shop or johnlewis.com.  Customers are being advised to stop using the product and return it to their nearest shop as soon as possible for a full refund.  Arrangements can be made for the items to be collected and refunded by calling 01698 545 072.  Colours: light grey with oak and graphite with walnut  IKEA recalls SÖTSAK SKUMTOPP, soft marshmallows covered in chocolate flavoured coating (180g) because of undeclared milk.  Customers with an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents are advised not to consume the affected product and return it to their nearest IKEA store for a full refund where no receipt is required.  Best before dates: between March 12 2019 and April 18 2019  B&Q have issued a warning on the above product that they are not compatible with electric showers.  If used with an electric shower, it could cause flow restriction and result in hot water building up in the shower with a risk of injury.  The product is safe to use with mixer showers.  If customers have one of these products in use with an electric shower they are advised to stop using the flow restriction feature immediately and return the product to their local store.  Lidl customers have been urged to return own-brand chocolate bars which were available in stores nationwide as they could cause sickness and skin issues.  The grocery giant issued the warning after a labelling error meant key allergy-triggering ingredients were not written in English on the packagaging.  The bars contain barley (gluten), wheat (gluten), milk, nuts, and soya, but none of these allergens are in English on the label and is a possible is a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy or intolerance to barley, gluten, wheat, milk or milk constituents and/or an allergy to nuts and/or soya.  No other Lidl products are known to be affected.  If you have bought the above product and have an allergy or intolerance to barley, gluten, wheat, milk or milk constituents and/or an allergy to nuts and/or soya, do not eat it.  It can be returned to the store from where it was bought for a full refund.  Hovis is recalling packs of Hovis Granary Bread Flour (1kg) because they contain malted barley flour, which has not been declared on the label posing an allergy to barley.  If you have bought the flour and have an allergy to barley, do not use it, keep the packaging and contact the brand on 0800 085 3959 for a full refund or contact them online here .  Asda is recalling its garlic and parsley butter, which are provided as an accompaniment on its fish counters.  There is a possibility that very low levels of peanut may be present in the butter, which is not declared on the label.  This means the product is a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy to peanuts.  It can be returned your nearest store for a full refund where you will not need a receipt.  HP's recall of almost 80,000 laptops worldwide is over fears that faulty batteries are a fire risk.  HP says the affected laptops have batteries which have the "potential to overheat, posing a fire and burn hazard to customers".  The issue affects HP laptop or mobile workstations bought between December 2015 and April 2018.  The models potentially affected by the battery issue include:  However, customers may have purchased an affected battery as an accessory or replacement for the following products:  HP has urged customers with affected laptops to request a new battery and download a free tool from their website which checks if the battery needs replacing.  If it does, the advice is to put the battery into ‘safety mode’.  HP says it will change the batteries for free.  Hill's Pet Nutrition, whose products are stocked in places like Pets at Home, have issued an updated urgent recall of selected canned dog food because it may contain high levels of vitamin D.  This follows a previous recall last month.  According to the risk statement from the Food Standards Agency, "high levels of vitamin D fed to a pet over a short period (weeks/months) should not cause concern."  However, they add: "Over a longer period of feeding, ingestion of elevated levels can lead to potential health issues depending on the level of vitamin D and the length of exposure, and dogs may exhibit symptoms such as vomiting, loss of appetite, increased thirst, increased urination, excessive drooling, and weight loss. Vitamin D, when consumed at very high levels, can lead to serious health issues in dogs including renal dysfunction."  Dog owners who purchased the product with the specific lot/date codes listed should stop feeding their dogs the product and return it to where you bought it for a full refund.  If you have been feeding your dog with the product and have concerns that they may be showing symptoms of illness then contact a vet or the Hill's Pet Nutrition consumer careline.  Vegan milk brand Oatly is recalling one is its products over concerns that it could contain metal pieces.  The recall only applied to the Oatly Oat Drink Whole (1 litre) which has been sold in Tesco stores with the best before date code April 29 2019.  No other Oatly UK products are known to be affected.  Advice to customers is to not drink the milk and return it to the store it was purchased for a full refund.  Oatly said: "As a precaution we're doing a recall of an isolated batch of Oatly chilled Oat Drink whole that might contain metal pieces from a broken machine part.  "The risk is very small but we always put safety first and want to make sure we eliminate any risk.  "No further stock was impacted on the affected production line, or any of our other products."  The beer contains wheat (gluten) and oats (gluten) which have not been mentioned on the label posing a risk to anyone with an allergy or intolerance to wheat, oats or gluten.  The product can be returned to the store where it was purchased for a full refund.  No other London Fields Brewery products are known to be affected.  Best before: all date codes up to and including December 4 2019.  Spar is recalling its range of blueberry muffins over concerns they may contain pieces of plastic.  The products have been declared unsafe to eat and could present a choking hazard.  The product should not be eaten and returned to the store it was purchased from for a full refund.  Genius is recalling its gluten free range of cinnamon and raisin bagels due to the presence of egg which is not mentioned on its labelling.  This therefore pose a health risk to anyone with an allergy or intolerance to egg.  The product can be returned to the store where it was brought for a full refund.  Best before date: up to and including April 8 2019


birminghammail--2019-02-28--Asda Boots Lidl and The Co-op issue urgent product recalls with shoppers offered FULL refunds

Asda, Boots, Lidl and The Co-op issue urgent product recalls with shoppers offered FULL refunds

Asda, Lidl and The Co-operative have issued product recalls with shoppers told to return items for FULL refunds.  Birmingham shoppers are being told they may be affected by the string of recalls, which have been issued via the Trading Standards website.  The Food Standards Agency is also running a series of statements.  Retailers are affected across the city, from popular supermarkets to high street giants, and convenience stores too.  Asda shoppers are being told to return soup, with Lidl products also affected.  The Co-op and Boots have also revealed they are withdrawing certain products from shelves.  Here is a list of the latest product recalls affecting you this week:  Asda has issued a recall on tubs of it's Sweet Potato & Red Chilli soup after packaging went out without warning customers that it contained mustard.  The allergy, which is most common in the UK, Canada and India, is classed as one of the most severe among food allergies, with ingestion possibly leading to anaphylactic shock.  The most common symptoms for a mustard allergy sufferer are itching, breathing difficulties, dizziness, nausea and the swelling of the throat and face.  Asda has also contacted the relevant allergy support organisations, who will inform their members about the recall, and put up a point-of-sale notice explaining to customers why the product is being recalled.  The recall has been issued on 600g tubs, which cost £1.09.  Customers who purchased the product are being urged to return them to their nearest store, where a full refund will be issued without the need of a receipt.  In a statement, Asda said: "It has come to our attention that Asda Sweet Potato & Red Chilli soup 600g contains mustard, which is not declared in the ingredients.  "We are very sorry for any inconvenience caused and will ensure this does not happen again."  The following use by dates are effected by the recall:  Boots is recalling Boots Shapers Teriyaki Houmous Chips because they contain mustard which is not mentioned on the label. This means the product is a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy to mustard.  No other Boots products are known to be affected.  Boots is recalling the above product from customers and has contacted the relevant allergy support organisations, which will tell their members about the recall.  The company has also issued a point-of-sale notice to its customers.  These notices explain to customers why the product is being recalled and tell them what to do if they have bought the product.  Co-op is recalling five soup products because they contain mustard which is not mentioned on the label.  This means the products are a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy to mustard.  No other Co-op products are known to be affected.  Budget supermarket Lidl is urging customers to stop using the Kania Sea Salt Ceramic Grinders and Kania Black Peppercorns Ceramic Grinders as they may contain small pieces of glass and could potentially cause a "safety risk".  It has posted a recall alert on the Trading Standards website, advising customers what to do if they have bought them.  Lidl has also displayed point of sale notices in stores selling these products.  If you have bought the salt and pepper grinders return them to your nearest store for a full refund.


newsweek--2019-01-30--Chicken Nugget Recall 18 Tons of Tyson Panko Nuggets Recalled Over Rubber Contamination How to Tel

Chicken Nugget Recall: 18 Tons of Tyson Panko Nuggets Recalled Over Rubber Contamination, How to Tell Your Product Is Safe

Tyson Foods Inc. recalled more than 18 tons of its chicken nuggets after some consumers discovered rubber in the product.  The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) said the recall is of approximately 36,420 pounds—or 18.21 tons—of panko chicken nugget items. It categorized the health risk as “high.”  Consumers are urged not to eat the affected product, which was produced at the end of November and distributed to retail stores nationwide.  FSIS said it was notified of the contamination on January 29, the same day the recall was issued.  The affected product is 5 lb plastic packages of “Tyson White Meat Panko Chicken Nuggets” with a “Best If Used By” date of “Nov 26 2019,” case code “3308SDL03,” and time stamps 23:00 through 01:59.  They also bear establishment number “P-13556” inside the USDA mark of inspection.  “There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about an injury or illness should contact a healthcare provider,” FSIS said in a release.  “FSIS is concerned that some product may be frozen and in consumers’ freezers. Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.”  Tyson said in a release it had voluntarily recalled the product.  “A small number of consumers contacted the company to say they had found small pieces of soft, blue plastic in the nuggets, prompting the company to issue the recall,” Tyson said.  “Though the pieces have been found in a very small number of packages, no injuries have been reported with this recall; however, out of an abundance of caution, the company is recalling 36,420 pounds of product.  “Consumers should know that the product was shipped to club store distribution centers in Arizona, California, Illinois, New Jersey and Utah.  “Consumers who have purchased any of the affected items, you should discard the product, cut the UPC and date code from the back of the packaging and mail it to the following address for a full refund: Tyson Foods Consumer Relations, P.O. Box 219, Kings Mountain, NC 28086.  “Consumers with questions should call the special toll-free line at 1-888-747-7611. Customer service representatives will be available Monday through Friday 7am – 6pm CST.”  This is not the only Tyson recall in recent years. According to the FSIS website, Tyson also recalled chicken products in 2016, 2017, and 2018 for hard plastic contamination, misbranding, and undeclared allergens.


birminghammail--2019-01-02--Showers urgently recalled amid fears people could get electric shock

Birmingham homeowners are being urgently warned after a shower unit was recalled.  The unit is no longer selling amid fears it could pose a FIRE risk.  Some people could reportedly receive an electric shock from the unit, too.  According to Electrical Safety First, the Triton's Safeguard+ shower could develop a fault which might lead to overheating and a potential risk of electric shock or fire hazard in a very small number of cases.  The charity said: "If your shower is showing any signs of discolouration you must stop using it immediately and contact the manufacturer.  "If you believe you have a Safeguard+ affected please contact the Triton Service team on freephone 0800 0154 145."  The date stamp will be between 05/14 (May 2014) to 12/16 (December 2016).  This date code is on the product rating label located on the underside of the product.  No other Triton shower is affected.  Electrical Safety First added in its website: "They [Triton] will then (if required) arrange a mutually agreeable time for a Triton engineer to call and carry out a safety inspection to check and correct any issues.  "This visit would be free of charge, will be undertaken by one of their qualified engineers and it should take no longer than 15 minutes to complete."  The shower company gave the following advice:  You can find out more here.


birminghammail--2019-01-04--Waitrose urgently recalling products amid health risk fears

The move from the posh supermarket comes because they may contain duck meat.  Worryingly for shoppers, this an ingredient which is not mentioned on the label.  The spring rolls may also contain sesame.  This again is not listed in the product's ingredients.  If you have an allergy to sesame or do not eat meat, do not eat this product.  Instead, return them to your nearest Waitrose store for a full refund.  The product details are as follows:  No other products are affected by this recall.


birminghammail--2019-01-13--Argos and Lidl urgently recall products amid health fears - and youre owed a refund

Argos and Lidl urgently recall products amid health fears - and you're owed a refund

Argos, Lidl and other popular retailers are urgently recalling items this week - and if you own one of the products, you're due a refund.  Birmingham shoppers affected by the latest recalls, all of which are on the Food Standards Agency (FSA) or Chartered Trading Standards Institute websites, are urged to return the items.  BirminghamLive has a full round-up of all the affected products this week.  They include items from popular high street giants like Argos.  And budget supermarkets, widely popular with Brummies looking to save a penny or two, are also affected.  One product could cause harm to infants, it has also been revealed.  These are the items being recalled:  The level of insulation provided by this duvet exceeds the specified rating, which may cause an infant to overheat.  Trading Standards advise customers to stop using the duvet immediately and return it to an Argos store for a full refund of £15.  They add you will not need a proof of purchase.  Lidl is recalling McEnnedy Supersize Peanut Flips because they contain peanuts which may not be mentioned in the product ingredients list.  Affected packs are the 450g bags with a best before date of June 10, 2019.  Yorkshire Provender is recalling Moroccan Vegetable Tagine Soup with a use by date of October 15, 2019.  This is due to incorrect date labelling.  The product should have been labelled with a use by date of January 15, 2019, meaning the product could be unsafe to eat if consumed after the correct use by date.  Customers are advised to return the product for a full refund. No other date codes or Yorkshire Provender products are affected.  Belfield is recalling Ice King Strawberry Cones because the product has been mispackaged with "choc and nut ice cream cones".  The product contains peanuts which are not mentioned on the label, posing a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy to peanuts.  If you have bought the above product and have an allergy to peanuts do not eat it. Customers are advised to return it to the store from where it was bought for a full refund.  Three Sogud products are being recalled due to a gluten presence being found in some of their oat squares.  All three packs are the 42g size, with the best before date being those up to and including September 3, 2019.  Sondey Organic Biscuits Assorted because they contain peanuts, oats (gluten), sesame, milk and hazelnuts which may not be mentioned on the label.  Because of this they are a possible health risk for anyone with an allergy or intolerance to oats or gluten, an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents, an allergy to peanuts, nuts, or and an allergy to sesame.  The affected packs include the 200g size with a best before date of May 30, 2019.  The BCE Tip Cement (in the blue tube only), sold as part of the BCE Snooker and Pool Cue Care Kit, is being recalled for safety reasons.  The toluene content of this product may be in excess of legal safety levels (as set out by EU REACH Regulations) and may be dangerous and present a potential risk to anyone handling the product.  Customers are advised to stop using this product immediately and keep it out of reach of children and pets.


birminghammail--2019-01-22--Sainsburys urgently recall garlic bread amid serious health fears

Sainsbury's urgently recall garlic bread amid serious health fears

Garlic bread is being urgently recalled by Sainsbury's amid serious health risk fears.  The classic starter is being withdrawn by the huge supermarket chain.  The retailer has opted to remove the product from stores.  The garlic bread affected, the supermarket confirmed, comes from its Free From range.  The move has been made by Sainsbury's, which operates numerous stores across Birmingham and the wider Midlands, because it contains milk.  Sainsbury's is asking customers to bring back 'Deliciously Free From Garlic Pizza Bread' for a full refund.  The ingredient is not mentioned on the label.  And this means that the bread could be a possible health risk to anyone with an allergy or intolerance to milk or milk constituents.  If you have bought the garlic bread and have an allergy to milk, do not eat it.  Instead, return it to the store from where it was bought for a full refund.  The supermarket has also issued a point-of-sale notice to customers, explaining why the product has been recalled and what to do if they have bought the garlic bread.


breaking911--2019-09-03--ALERT Over 24000 Pound of Beef Recalled Unfit For Human Consumption

ALERT: Over 24,000 Pound of Beef Recalled, “Unfit For Human Consumption”

American Beef Packers, Inc., a Chino, Calif. establishment, is recalling approximately 24,428 pounds of raw beef products that are deemed unfit for human consumption, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.  FSIS inspection personnel retained the carcass and collected a sample for further analysis. Prior to test results being received, the carcass was erroneously released and further processed into raw intact and non-intact beef products, which were distributed in commerce.  The raw beef items were produced and packaged on Aug. 21, 2019. The following products are subject to recall: [View Labels]  The products subject to recall bear establishment number “EST. 34741” inside the USDA mark of inspection. These items were shipped to federal establishments in California and Oregon.  The firm notified FSIS on Aug. 30, 2019 that a carcass that was pending laboratory results had been erroneously released and further processed into raw intact and non-intact beef products.  There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about a reaction should contact a healthcare provider.  FSIS is concerned that some product may be frozen and consumers’ refrigerators or freezers or both. Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.  FSIS routinely conducts recall effectiveness checks to verify recalling firms notify their customers of the recall and that steps are taken to make certain that the product is no longer available to consumers.  Consumers and members of the media with questions about the recall can contact Kari Godbey Houchens, Regulatory Manager, American Beef Packers, Inc. at (909) 628-4888 ext. 123.


breaking911--2019-10-09--ICE CREAM RECALL: Broken Plastic Tool May Have Caused Contamination

Blue Bell Ice Cream is voluntarily recalling a select lot of half gallon Butter Crunch Ice Cream produced on a specific line on August 26, 2019 in its Sylacauga, AL plant because of the possibility the products may contain a foreign object.  Blue Bell discoveredthe issue when it was notified by a consumer of the presence of a piece of a plastic tool in a half gallon of Butter Crunch Ice Cream. The company investigation revealed the broken tool was inadvertently incorporated into the production process in a small amount of product. In an abundance of caution, the company is recalling a full day of production of this flavor from this manufacturing facility.  The Butter Crunch Ice Cream half gallons produced in Sylacauga can be identified by the following code located on the top of the packaging lid: 082621222. An image of the affected product is included below.  The affected Butter Crunch Ice Cream half gallons were distributed in parts of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. All affected stores are directly delivered to and serviced by Blue Bell Creameries and have been instructed to remove the product from their shelves. There have been no reports of injuries due to consumption of this product to date. This recall is being conducted in cooperation with the FDA.  Consumers who have purchased these items can return them to the place of purchase for a full refund. For more information, consumers with questions may call 979-836-7977, Monday–Friday 8 am– 5 pm CST.


CHEESE NIPS RECALLED

Mondelēz Global LLC announced today a voluntary recall of a limited quantity of Cheese Nips (11 oz. Box) product in the United States due to the potential presence of small food-grade yellow plastic pieces from a dough scraper that was incorporated into the production process of a small amount of product. The company became aware of this issue when yellow plastic pieces were noticed on the manufacturing equipment.  This recall is limited exclusively to the Cheese Nips product listed in the grid, available at retail stores nationwide. No other Mondelēz Global LLC products nor any other geographies are included in or affected by this recall.  There have been no reports of injury or illness reported to Mondelēz Global to date related to this product.  Consumers who have this product should not eat it, and should discard any product they may have. Consumers can contact the company at 1-844-366-1171, 24 hours a day to get more information about the recall, and Consumer Relations specialists are available Monday- Friday, 9am to 6pm EST.


breaking911--2019-11-25--ALERT: 250 TONS of Pork Recalled Because It Was Never Inspected

Morris Meat Packing, a Maywood, Ill. establishment, is recalling approximately 515,000 pounds of various raw, intact pork products that were produced without the benefit of federal inspection and outside inspection hours, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.  The raw, intact pork items were produced on Saturdays from November 25, 2017 to November 9, 2019. The following spreadsheet contains the list of products subject to the recall. [View Labels (PDF only)]  The products subject to recall bear establishment number “EST. 18267” inside the USDA mark of inspection. These items were shipped to distributors and retail locations in Illinois.  The problem was discovered when FSIS received an anonymous tip that the firm was producing products without the benefit of inspection.  There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about a reaction should contact a healthcare provider.  FSIS is concerned that some product may be in consumers’ refrigerators or freezers. Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.  FSIS routinely conducts recall effectiveness checks to verify recalling firms notify their customers of the recall and that steps are taken to make certain that the product is no longer available to consumers. When available, the retail distribution list(s) will be posted on the FSIS website at www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls.  Consumers and media with questions regarding the recall can contact Frank Masellis, President of Morris Meat Packing, at (708) 865-8566.


breaking911--2019-12-01--ALERT: Turkey & Bacon Recalled In 4 States

Blue Grass Quality Meats, an Erlanger, Ky. establishment, is recalling approximately 121,083 pounds of pork bacon and ready-to-eat turkey products due to misbranding and undeclared allergens, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today. The products contain soy, a known allergen, which is not declared on the product labels.  The Cajun style bacon and ready-to-eat Cajun style turkey breast items were produced on various dates from Oct. 29, 2018 to Nov. 19, 2019. The following products are subject to recall: [View Labels (PDF only)] • Various weights of shrink-wrap packages containing “BLUE GRASS CAJUN STYLE TURKEY BREAST” with sell by dates from 7/1/19 to 1/9/20. • Various weights of shrink-wrap packages containing “OLDE WORLD Cajun Style TURKEY BREAST” with sell by dates from 7/1/19 to 1/1/20. • Various weights of shrink-wrap packages containing “Robinson’s PREMIUM Cajun Style Turkey Breast” with sell by dates from 7/12/19 to 1/16/20. • Various weights of shrink-wrap packages containing “Troyer CAJUN STYLE TURKEY BREAST” with sell by dates from 7/18/19 to 1/21/20. • Various weights of vacuum sealed packages containing “Troyer CAJUN STYLE BACON” with sell by dates from 1/28/19 to 2/19/20.  The products subject to recall bear establishment number “P-7417” or “EST. 7417” inside the USDA mark of inspection. These items were shipped to retail locations in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia, where the turkey products may have been offered as retail-sliced deli product.  The problem was discovered when the firm’s seasoning supplier notified them that the proprietary seasoning, which is not supposed to contain soy, actually contains soy lecithin.  There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about an injury or illness should contact a healthcare provider.  FSIS is concerned that some product may be in retailers’ deli and consumers’ refrigerators or freezers. Retailers who have obtained these products are urged not to sell them. Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.  FSIS routinely conducts recall effectiveness checks to verify that recalling firms are notifying their customers of the recall and that actions are being taken to make certain that the product is no longer available to consumers.


breitbart--2019-11-01--Nestle Announces Recall After Rubber Pieces Found Inside Cookie Dough

Nestlé USA announced a recall of its ready-to-bake refrigerated cookie dough on Thursday, due to the possible presence of food-grade rubber pieces.  “This voluntary recall only covers specific batch codes of the following products, which include ready-to-bake refrigerated Nestlé Toll House Cookie Dough bars, tubs, and tube-shaped ‘chubs.’ These products were distributed in the continental U.S. and Puerto Rico,” the announcement posted by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration read.  The voluntarily recalled products are listed as:  Products not affected by the recall are Nestlé Toll House Morsels, Nestlé Toll House Ice Cream Sandwiches, Nestlé Toll House Edible Cookie Dough, and Nestlé Professional SKUs.  “To identify the batch code on the package, Nestlé released reference images and highlighted the four-digit batch code where it appears after the ‘use or freeze-by’ date and before the number 5753,” according to ABC News.  However, Nestlé said in a recent statement that the source of the rubber had been identified and the problem resolved.  “No illnesses or injuries have been reported that required medical treatment,” the company said, adding that it implemented the voluntary recall “out of an abundance of caution after receiving reports of food-grade pieces of rubber in some of these products.”  Nestlé also encouraged anyone who purchased one or more of the products listed to discard it, keep their proof of purchase, and contact Consumer Services at nestleproductinquiry@casupport.com.


breitbart--2019-11-22--Over 75K Pounds of Salad Recalled Due to E. Coli Outbreak

More than 75,000 pounds of salad have been recalled due to a possible E. coli contamination, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).  Missa Bay, LLC, a Swedesboro, N.J. establishment, is recalling approximately 75,233 pounds of salad products that contain meat or poultry because the lettuce ingredient may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today. The products subject to recall bear establishment number “EST. 18502B” inside the USDA mark of inspection. These items were shipped to distribution locations in Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia and Wisconsin.  The food items were produced from October 14, 2019, through October 16, 2019, and were listed as bowl salads containing romaine lettuce sold at Walmart, Target, and Aldi.  So far, a total of 17 people, including one three-year-old, were infected with the E. coli sickness. Two individuals in Maryland said they ate the chicken Caesar salad from Missa Bay before they became ill and were admitted to the hospital.  “Seven people have been hospitalized and two developed a type of kidney failure. There have been no fatalities,” according to the New York Post.  Thursday, the USDA urged consumers to either throw the food items away or return them to the place of purchase.  “Most people with a STEC infection start feeling sick 3 to 4 days after eating or drinking something that contains the bacteria. However, illnesses can start anywhere from 1 to 10 days after exposure,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).  Symptoms may vary from person to person but often include severe stomach cramps, diarrhea, and vomiting.  “Contact your healthcare provider if you have diarrhea that lasts for more than 3 days or diarrhea that is accompanied by a fever higher than 102˚F, blood in the stool, or so much vomiting that you cannot keep liquids down and you pass very little urine,” the agency concluded.


chicagosuntimes--2019-04-12--Do you have a recalled dehumidifier like one that caught fire killing this dog

Do you have a recalled dehumidifier like one that caught fire, killing this dog?

They’ve caused hundreds of house fires with millions in damages and figured in last month’s first-ever criminal charges under a federal product-safety law.  But despite a national recall, thousands of dangerous, defective dehumidifiers remain in people’s homes, often running 24/7 in basements where overheating can go unnoticed, experts say.  With the warm weather, the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission is urging consumers to check their make and model against several announced recalls for dehumidifiers made by Gree Electric Appliances, GD Midea Air Conditioning Equipment Ltd. and LG Electronics Tianjin Appliance Co., all in China.  The recalls cover about 6.8 million dehumidifiers that were sold as late as 2013 at major stores including Home Depot, Kmart, Lowe’s, Menards, Sam’s Club, Sears, Ace Hardware, Walmart and Amazon.com.  The defective dehumidifiers have been linked to approximately 500 fires that caused a total of more than $25 million in damage, according to the federal consumer agency. The bulk of those were with Gree dehumidifiers.  The recalls were announced and reissued over the past few years, but fires keep happening. It’s not known how many units are still in people’s homes. In general, consumer response to recalls averages about 6 percent.  “People need to know these things are really dangerous,” says Richard Schuster, a Wisconsin lawyer who has handled numerous insurance cases involving fires with recalled dehumidifiers, including several in Illinois.  Many consumers don’t know about the recalls and are running defective units continuously during warmer weather, causing fires, Schuster says. “It’s not going to stop,” he says. “There’s going to be more and more claims unfortunately.”  To check your dehumidifier, search on CPSC.gov for “dehumidifier” to bring up information on the recalls.  Gree also has its own recalls site, as does Midea.  “It is troublesome that we are continuing to see fires with recalled dehumidifiers because what that means is people are unaware about the recall,” CPSC spokeswoman Patty Davis says.  Even if their unit is not on a recall list, consumers should turn off dehumidifiers whenever they leave the house or go to bed, Davis says.  “Never turn on a dehumidifier and forget about it,” she says. “Keep your eye on it just like you would any other small appliance.”  Leon Jackson of downstate Normal and his family were lucky to survive last September, when a dehumidifier they didn’t realize had been recalled caught fire, causing extensive damage to their home. His family was asleep when the unit, in the basement, apparently overheated and caught fire sometime before 5 a.m.  The home is being gutted and rebuilt. Jackson says he hopes they will be able to return in mid-May — eight months after the fire.  “We haven’t been back since the fire,” Jackson says. A smoke alarm was “pretty much the only thing that kept it from being a tragedy.”  Normal Fire Chief Mick Humer says the units can smolder out of sight in a basement for hours before fire spreads.  “It just looks like a molten glob when it’s all over,” he says. “It does an incredible amount of damage through the house because of the smoke.”  The dehumidifiers were sold under about 60 names, adding to the confusion. Some were familiar brands like Frigidaire, GE, Kenmore and Sunbeam. Others were essentially the same product but sold under a different brand.  In March 2016, Gree agreed to pay a $15.45 million civil penalty for failing to report known problems with the dehumidifiers to the U.S. government.  Last month, the Justice Department announced federal charges against two executives of a company that imported and distributed the defective Gree dehumidifiers, accusing them of failing to report known defects and continuing to sell unsafe units to retailers.  After a dehumidifier fire last August killed her dog Bubba and caused extensive smoke damage to her family’s home, Sophie Meranda of Cedarburg, Wisconsin, started a Facebook group — “Bubba Barks Back” — to spread the word about dehumidifier recalls.  Meranda says her family’s dehumidifier ignited one morning when everyone was out of the house, but the dog was still inside. The fire was contained to the basement, but smoky dust carried by the air-conditioning spread through the home, even covering items inside drawers and cabinets.  Her father was the first one home. “He was calling and calling for Bubba, and no response,” Meranda says. “That was so devastating.”  The family found out after the fire that their dehumidifier had been recalled. After Meranda started the Facebook page to honor her dog, she says about 45 people have told her they’ve checked their dehumidifiers and found they’d been recalled, too.


dailyheraldchicago--2019-06-27--Fisher-Price recalls another inclined infant sleeper marking full exit from troubled category

Fisher-Price recalls another inclined infant sleeper, marking full exit from troubled category

Fisher-Price on Thursday recalled 71,000 infant play yards with inclined-sleeper attachments, in cooperation with the Consumer Product Safety Commission, despite no deaths or injuries being associated with the product - and no apparent product defect.  But Fisher-Price's decision to pull its Ultra-Lite Day & Night Play Yard with inclined sleeper marks the company's full exit from selling inclined sleep products, several weeks after the company recalled 4.7 million of its popular Rock 'n Play inclined sleepers because that product was associated with more than 30 baby deaths.  The April 12 recall of the Rock 'n Play ignited a debate over how a product that seemed to violate recommended safe-sleep practices was developed and allowed to be sold for a decade. The American Academy of Pediatrics and government authorities have long said that babies should sleep flat on their backs in cribs or bassinets. An inclined sleeper allows babies to sleep at an approximately 30-degree angle.  Nearly 700,000 inclined sleepers made by Kids II - which were tied to five deaths - were recalled shortly after Rock 'n Play was recalled.  Consumer advocates such as Consumer Reports, along with the American Academy of Pediatrics, have asked for a complete ban on the sale of inclined sleepers. Canada does not allow products with a greater than 10-degree incline to be sold as infant sleeping devices.  The sale of inclined sleepers made by other companies continues, but that could eventually change.  Earlier this month, the CPSC said in an agency document that it planned to stop work on the development of safety guidelines for inclined sleep products. The agency had been looking at establishing the guidelines, based on voluntary safety rules, for two years.  The death toll associated with inclined sleepers has continued to climb, the agency said, revealing that it knows of 50 deaths tied to the product.


drudgereport--2019-07-25--Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeons React to Breast Implant Recall Dont Panic

Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeons React to Breast Implant Recall: 'Don't Panic'...

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced a voluntary nationwide recall of certain types of textured breast implants on Wednesday due to their cancer risk.  The manufacturer Allergan recalled its Biocell textured breast implants from suppliers and doctors' offices, in order to protect from breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL).  It follows an increase of 116 new cases of BIA-ALCL globally and 24 deaths since earlier this year (France, Canada and Australia have already taken similar action). About 84 percent of BIA-ALCL cases are attributed to Allergan implants, opposed to other FDA-approved brands Mentor, Ideal and Sientra.  Beverly Hills and Los Angeles-based plastic surgeons tell The Hollywood Reporter that there's no need to panic, since textured breast implants are uncommon in the U.S. compared to other countries (namely those in Europe and South America). Only about five percent of all implants in the U.S. are textured — which grip the chest to avoid movement, desirable for shaped breast implants — while most are smooth.  Plastic surgeon Dr. Robert Cohen, of Emerage Medical in West Hollywood, tells THR that ALCL is "extremely rare" and has a greater than 90 percent cure rate with a surgery to entirely remove the implant and scar tissue. He no longer uses many textured implants due to patients' concerns and stopped using Biocell more than five years ago (the FDA noticed a possible connection between breast implants and ALCL in 2011 and told doctors and patients about potential risks). Similarly, Dr. T.Y. Steven Ip, a plastic surgeon with locations in Beverly Hills, Newport Beach and New York, says he has used textured implants in the past but, as issues have been raised, has informed his patients about benefits and downsides.  Dr. Gabriel Chiu of star-loved Beverly Hills Plastic Surgery Inc. says his office uses about 99 percent Mentor breast implants (only when the patient already has Allergan implants from another clinic does Chiu use Allergan replacements under warranty). Since Chiu's work is almost entirely cosmetic, he doesn't often use textured breast implants, which are mainly reconstructive, he says.  Dr. Rady Rahban of Beverly Hills stopped using the textured implants about a year ago, adding that texturing is used with shaped or anatomical implants, such as teardrops. "You can't stitch implants to the wall of the chest, so the texturing was a Velcro effect that prevented the implants from rotating," Rahban tells THR.  Ip explains that Southern California residents seeking textured implants typically fall into one of two categories.  The first type of people are usually fitness-oriented, who want to put the implant above the muscle. "If you're real physical like a cross-fit competitor, body builder or yoga instructor and you're constantly flexing the muscle and you don't want the muscle disturbed, most of the times putting implants above the muscle is the better option," Ip says. "When you put implants above the muscle with a smooth implant, the problem is that you have a higher risk of forming an internal scar around the implant." So they may turn to textured implants to reduce internal scarring risks.  The second group of people in L.A. seeking textured augmentation are those with sloped ribs: "One of the problems with smooth implants ... is that with that angulation of their ribs, the implants can slip and fall to the side," Ip says. "A textured implant with more friction on them grab on better. They kind of stay in the same spot; they don't fall as much and they stay locked in."  The doctors agree it's best to recall the products to be safe and want to assuage any patient panic.  "It's really affected the other parts of the world before us, but I think for safety reasons, I think it's a good move to just pull it off the market. Why subject the population to even that small, small risk?" Ip says.  "Moving forward, I don't think the right move is that all women with textured implants suddenly call their doctors, run in and have their implants removed. I do think as a result of having more knowledge, people can be aware of symptoms of the implant-related disease and be more cautious, but I don't think this warrants any kind of panic," Rahban adds.  Cohen concurs: "Don't panic, we're on top of things." He doesn't want to see patients hurrying to their plastic surgeons, because they're scared they're going to get cancer. "Statistically speaking, it's an extraordinary low risk."  The FDA does not recommend people with the recalled breast implants get them removed unless symptoms arise. If swelling or redness develops, the patient can consider removing them and replacing them with smooth implants, Ip says. "If they want them out, that's their prerogative," Cohen adds. Chiu was told by an Allergan rep that removal or replacement would be the financial responsibility of the patient.  "Although the overall incidence of BIA-ALCL appears to be relatively low, once the evidence indicated that a specific manufacturer’s product appeared to be directly linked to significant patient harm, including death, the FDA took action to alert the firm to new evidence indicating a recall is warranted to protect women’s health," said FDA principal deputy commissioner Amy Abernethy in a statement. "Our team concluded that action is necessary at this time to protect the public health."  Some of the products recalled include Natrelle Saline-Filled breast implants, Natrelle Silicone-Filled breast implants, Natrelle Inspira Silicone-Filled breast implants, Natrelle 410 Highly Cohesive Anatomically Shaped Silicone-Filled breast implants, Natrelle 133 Plus Tissue Expander and Natrelle 133 Tissue Expander with Suture Tabs.  Allergan said that Biocell saline-filled and silicone-filled textured breast implants, as well as tissue expanders, will no longer be distributed or sold. "Patient safety is a priority for Allergan. Patients are advised to speak with their plastic surgeon about the risks and benefits of their implant type should they have any concerns," the Ireland-based pharmaceutical company announced.


eveningstandard--2019-06-03--Cadbury cheesecake desserts recalled over listeria fears

Two Cadbury cheesecake desserts have been recalled over concerns they may contain harmful listeria.  Customers have been told not to eat Cadbury Dairy Milk Cheesecakes and Cadbury Dairy Milk Caramel Cheesecakes and are urged to return the products to stores.  Müller UK said the puddings had been recalled "as a precaution due to the possible presence of Listeria monocytogenes in the products".  No other Müller UK products are known to be affected.  Symptoms caused by listeria can be similar to flu and include high temperature, muscle ache or pain, chills, feeling or being sick and diarrhoea.  In rare cases the infection can be more severe, causing serious complications such as meningitis.  Some people are more vulnerable to listeria infections, including those over 65 years of age, pregnant women and their unborn babies, babies less than one month old and people with weakened immune systems.  A statement by the Food Standards Agency said: "Müller produces these products under license from Cadbury and has stressed that this does not impact any other products it produces for Cadbury; or Cadbury Cheesecake variants in the UK or other markets."  It adds: "If you have bought any of the above products, do not eat them. Instead, return them to the store from where they were bought for a full refund."


eveningstandard--2019-10-08--Prescribed heartburn medicine Zantac recalled in UK over fears it may contain cancer-causing chemica

Prescribed heartburn medicine Zantac recalled in UK over fears it may contain cancer-causing chemical

A popular type of heartburn medicine is being recalled in the UK as a "precautionary measure" due to concerns the product may contain a cancer-causing chemical.  GlaxoSmithKline issued a recall on Tuesday of four types of the heartburn drug Zantac which are only available on prescription.  The move follows the discovery by the US Food and Drug Administration last week of "unacceptable levels" of a cancer-causing impurity in Zantac and its generic versions known chemically as ranitidine.  The four types of drug being recalled in the UK are Zantac 150mg/10ml Syrup, Zantac 50mg/2ml Injection, Zantac 150mg Tablets and Zantac 300mg Tablets.  However, patients should keep taking their prescribed medication, officials advised.  A spokesman for the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said the health risk of discontinuing the medication is higher than the potential risk of the impurity N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA).  Over-the-counter Zantac products are made by a different pharmaceutical firm and are not being recalled.  Healthcare professionals have been told to stop supplying the four prescription products immediately, quarantine all remaining stock and return it to their supplier.  The contaminant is classified as a probable human carcinogen but is not expected to cause harm when ingested in very low levels.  A spokesman for the MHRA said anyone concerned about taking their prescription should speak to a doctor or pharmacist.  Dr Andrew Gray, MHRA Deputy Director of Inspections, Enforcement & Standards, said: “Whilst this action is precautionary, the MHRA takes patient safety very seriously.  “Patients should keep taking their current medicines but should speak to their doctor or pharmacist if they are concerned and should seek their doctor’s advice before stopping any prescribed medicines.  “We have asked companies to quarantine batches of potentially affected medicines whilst we investigate and we will take action as necessary, including product recalls where appropriate.  “We have also requested risk assessments from the relevant companies which will include the testing of potentially affected batches.  “Currently, there is no evidence that medicines containing nitrosamines have caused any harm to patients, but the Agency is closely monitoring the situation, and working with other Regulatory Agencies around world.”


eveningstandard--2019-10-16--Birds Eye recalls 13,000 packets of chicken nuggets over plastic fears

Birds Eye are recalling 13,000 packets of chicken nuggets over fears they contain small pieces of clear plastic.  The company has urged customers not to eat the frozen food because they may be unsafe to eat.  The products being recalled are Birds Eye 790g packs of chicken nuggets with golden wholegrain that contain 50 pieces each.  A company spokesman said in a statement: “The safety of everyone who enjoys and loves our products is of the utmost importance to us and as soon as we became aware of a potential situation with our chicken nuggets, we immediately investigated and took precautionary action.  “This particular batch may contain small pieces of clear plastic due to an isolated manufacturing fault and we simply do not want to risk people consuming it.  “If you have the product in your freezer, please keep the part of the packaging that displays the batch code and then dispose of the product and contact us to arrange a refund of the purchase price.  “Alternatively, people can visit the stores they purchased the product from for a full refund.”  The batches to be recalled have a best before date of October 2020 and come with the code: "L9208 W V124", "L9208 X V124", "L9208 Y V124" or "L9208 Z V124".  Customers can find the codes on the back of the bag, next to the best before date.  The chicken nuggets are sold in all of the big four supermarkets apart from Tesco, and they cost between £3 and £4 for a pack.  New: Daily podcast from the Evening Standard  Listen and subscribe to The Leader on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Acast or your chosen podcast provider. New episodes every weekday from 4pm.


eveningstandard--2019-11-04--Salmonella scare: Hummus recalled at Nando's, Aldi, ASDA, Sainsbury's and more

A recall of hummus dips from major UK supermarkets has been extended pending further tests amid an ongoing salmonella scare.  The initial recall for products with an expiry date of November 7 has been extended for a further ten days across several supermarkets.  Zorba Delicates, which supply the likes of Aldi, Lidl, Asda and Sainsbury’s, said further laboratory testing found further traces of salmonella in an ingredient used in its hummus range.  Shoppers have been urged to return the products to the store where they were bought in order to gain a full refund.  The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has outlined more than 50 affected products on its website after seventeen dips were initially recalled last week.  The updated list includes an array of flavoured hummus dips including a Nando’s branded PERi-PERi Drizzle and a John Lewis carrot and dip snack pot.  The FSA said symptoms included fever, diarrhoea and abdominal cramps and warned customers not to consume the dips.  A spokesman for Zorba Delicates said: “We immediately alerted the FSA [Food Standard Agency] and our customers of this finding.  "While this will not be confirmed, for certain, until further testing has been completed, and despite all other samples being totally clear, we have taken the precautionary step of recalling additional hummus items based on this presumptive result."  The FSA said no other Zorba products are thought to be affected.  In 2017 Sainsbury’s and Marks & Spencer withdrew some hummus product lines to investigate a “quality issue” after complaints by customers.


eveningstandard--2019-12-17--Indesit and Hotpoint washing machine recall: Half a million Whirlpool models 'pose fire risk&ap

Indesit and Hotpoint washing machine recall: Half a million Whirlpool models 'pose fire risk'

Whirlpool has announced it is recalling as many as half a million fire-risk washing machines just months after it launched a major recall of potentially dangerous dryers.  The firm said washing machines sold under the Hotpoint and Indesit brands in the UK between October 2014 and February 2018 could be affected by a flaw with the door-locking system that could lead to them overheating and potentially catching fire.  It has urged owners of appliances bought since 2014 to contact Whirlpool immediately to check if their washing machine is one of the models affected.  Whirlpool said it was working at “full speed” to prepared to officially begin the recall in early January.  In the meantime, it advised consumers to unplug their washing machines and not use them.  Those who chose to continue using their machines should only use cold water cycles of 20C or lower as this significantly reduces the risk, Whirlpool said.  This is because the issue is associated with the washing machine’s heating element being activated during washing cycles above 20C.  Under the recall, all affected customers will have the choice of either a free-of-charge like-for-like replacement washing machine, or a free-of-charge in-home repair of their existing appliance.  Whirlpool Corporation vice president Jeff Noel said: “We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience and concern this may cause to our customers, particularly over the Christmas period, but we hope people will understand that we are taking action because people’s safety is our top priority.  “Preparing for a recall of this scale is a complex operation and we are working tirelessly to ensure we are ready to start offering replacements or repairs to our customers from early January.”  Consumers can check if their washing machine is affected by visiting their website, which includes an online model checker tool, as well as a full list of model numbers.  Alternatively, customers can call Whirlpool’s freephone hotline 0800 316 1442 where an adviser can assist with checking their model and providing further information.  To check if a washing machine is potentially affected, customers will need both the model number and the serial number of the appliance. Both of these codes can be found inside the door, or alternatively on a label on the rear of the appliance.  Whirlpool said the issue was identified by its safety team, adding that “no serious injuries have been reported”.  Mr Noel added: “This is an issue we inherited from buying Indesit Company, but as the new owner, it is our responsibility to keep our customers safe.  "We are recalling these products because it is the right thing to do for people’s safety and we will do whatever it takes to put the situation right for our customers.  “By taking actions like this, we are bringing the company we acquired in line with Whirlpool’s industry-leading global safety and quality standards.”  The latest recall comes after the company finally launched a full recall involving 500,000 dryers in July.  The company acted after being criticised for resisting demands for a full recall and instead carrying out a lengthy “safety campaign” that saw 1.7 million products modified instead.  That earlier recall related to certain models of Hotpoint, Indesit, Creda, Swan and Proline dryers built between 2004 and 2015.  In November MPs said it was “extraordinary” that as many as 800,000 of the defective dryers could still remain in people’s homes four years after Whirlpool revealed they were a fire risk.  A Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Committee investigation into the firm criticised the company for its slow response in modifying or replacing faulty machines while also condemning the firm’s use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) to “silence customers”.  Whirlpool had earlier revealed that, in recent years, it had logged 54 fires in its tumble dryers and admitted that three of those were models which had already been modified.  The BEIS committee also expressed concerns, shared by safety organisations, about the safety of Whirlpool’s modification.  The report called on the Government to press ahead with a new review of the safety of Whirlpool’s modification and to investigate other possible sources of fires in Whirlpool’s tumble dryers.  The BEIS report followed Grenfell Tower inquiry chairman Sir Martin Moore-Bick sayng he had “no doubt” that the fire was started by an electrical fault in a Hotpoint fridge-freezer, and dismissed a “fanciful” claim by Whirlpool that the fire could have been sparked by a discarded cigarette.