Castleberry's Recall Expands into Canada

TORONTO — Connors Bros. Income Fund on Monday expanded the recall of hot dog chili sauce made by its Castleberry Foods unit last week to include canned meat products on concerns they are also contaminated by a bacteria which causes botulism.

The Canadian company said there were no reported illnesses linked to the products in Canada, and that the contamination was believed to be isolated to a U.S. plant which has been shut down.

Castleberry’s original July 19 recall was expanded for a second time Saturday after information gathered by the Food and Drug Administration and FSIS indicated that processing malfunctions at the establishment have existed longer than initially estimated, the FDA reported.

More than 350 tons of chili and canned meat products were originally called back after four people in Indiana and Texas were hospitalized. The total products affected by the recall make up about 4 percent of the company's annual revenue and it has not determined the financial impact of the recall.

For a full list of recalled products, click here.

About two months ago, cans were coming out of a heating and sterilizing process too hot before going into a cooling canal, Dr. Ezra Barzilay, an epidemiologist with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told The Associated Press. Castleberry’s officials stopped production because they wanted to make sure cans had not expanded and possibly allowed contamination, he said.

Connors Bros. said the recall has been extended to chili, beef stew and other canned meat products, as well as four pet food products. The list includes two Great Value chili products which are sold only in Canada.

Read the full Reuters story here.