食品伙伴网导读：2009年7月20日，英国食品标准局网站称，来自加纳的Jesu Aka Ltd 生产的Active品牌的花生酱被高浓度的黄曲霉毒素污染。
原文报道：
Active brand peanut butter, Active brand groundnut paste and peanut butter made by Jesu Aka Ltd are contaminated with excessively high levels of aflatoxins. The Active brand groundnut paste is made from peanuts (peanuts are also known as groundnuts). The products, which are made in Ghana, and are generally sold in food stores that sell African and or African-Caribbean food.
The Agency has issued a Food Alert for Action advising local authority food law enforcement officers to remove these products from sale.
The contaminated products, which also fail to comply with food labelling legislation, are imported and distributed in the UK by Marduro UK Ltd.
Despite enquiries by food law enforcement officers in London, the Agency has not been able to establish exact distribution details of the products. However, the Agency is aware that the products are distributed through direct van sales to retailers who sell African or African-Caribbean food products.
Product detailsActions to be taken by local authoritiesFood alerts
Active Peanut Butter and Active Groundnut Paste (made by Mardoro Ltd)
The Active brand peanut butter and Active brand groundnut paste is made in Ghana by Mardoro Ltd (sometimes known as Maduro Ltd). The products are sold in clear plastic jars varying in size with a yellow lid and a red and yellow label. The wording 'Active Peanut Butter' or 'Active Groundnut Paste' is boldly printed on the label. The expiry date and batch code are often handwritten on the label or not provided at all.
An image of the product can be found at the link below.
Peanut Butter (made by Jesu Aka Ltd)
The peanut butter manufactured by Jesu Aka Ltd is sold in clear plastic jars varying in size with a yellow lid and a yellow and beige label. The wording ‘Peanut Butter’ is boldly printed on the label, with ‘manufactured by Jesu Aka Ltd’ appearing in smaller-sized text. The expiry date and batch code are handwritten on the label, which is sometimes unreadable. There is no clear brand name for this product.
An image of the product can be found at the link below.
These products contain aflatoxins well in excess of the maximum levels laid down in Commission Regulation (EC) No 1881/2006, which is enforced in England by the Contaminants in Food (England) Regulations 2009.
Enforcement officers are asked to visit food stores in their area that mainly sell African and or African-Caribbean food products to identify if the products are on sale. Both products are to be removed from sale, if necessary using powers under the Food Safety Act 1990. Officers are also asked to tell the Agency of any findings via email or by submitting an Incident Report Form online or by fax.
Full details of actions to be taken by local authorities can be found in the Food Alert for Action at the link below.
The science behind the story
Aflatoxins are a type of toxin found naturally in some foods. They are produced by certain moulds that grow on foods in tropical and sub-tropical countries. There may be an increased risk of cancer in people whose diets include high levels of aflatoxins. For this reason, in the UK and the rest of the EU, there are legal limits for aflatoxins in foods, to make sure that people take in as little of them as possible.
If there is a problem with a food product that means it should not be sold, then it might be 'withdrawn' (taken off the shelves) or 'recalled' (when customers are asked to return the product). Food alerts are the FSA's way of letting local authorities and consumers know about problems associated with food and, in some cases, providing details of specific action to be taken. They are issued under two categories:
- Food Alerts: for Action
- Food Alerts: for Information
You can get FSA alerts either by email or SMS text. Visit the Get Alerts page at the link below to find out how.
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