Colorado Springs Personal Injury Lawyer - Products Liability

Canned Bean Recall Expanded to Vegetables

Shannon Weidemann — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 08:00:43 GMT

A recall of canned beans manufactured by a Michigan based company has been expanded for the second time. This time large cans of vegetables have been added to the recall list. The recalled canned vegetables come in 6 and 7 pound sizes and include beans, asparagus, and black-eyed peas. The cans may be contaminated with botulism.

No illnesses have been reported to the FDA, but the agency says consumers should remain alert and throw away recalled products marketed under brand names Classic Sysco, Code, Frosty Acres Restaurant's Pride Preferred, GFS, Kitchen Essentials, Monarch Heritage, Necco, New Era, Nugget and Reliance Sysco.
Processors other than New Era may be packing these brands, but only products packed by New Era are subject to the recall.

Botulism can cause a deadly illness if ingested or absorbed by the skin. Great care should be taken when disposing of the recalled items. The cans should not be opened and should be double bagged. Most of the cans were probably sold to restaurants and institutions but were available to the general public. A complete list of recalled items can be found here: www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopic.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Shannon Weidemann

Inspections of Toy Imports to Increase

Shannon Weidemann — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 08:41:12 GMT

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced that it will be doing more inspections of toys at the nation's ports. The CPSC is working to reduce the number of dangerous toys that have been entering the United States. Last year saw a large number of toys recalled due to lead content. Lead when ingested can cause developmental and neurological problems.

Under the new initiatives, CPSC will begin to place full-time staff at some of the nation's busiest ports, such as Seattle. CPSC is being given access to real-time information and data from Customs officials about shipments bound for the U.S. so that CPSC staff can help pinpoint high-risk products.
CPSC also plans to boost port inspection of toys, fireworks, electrical products and other goods considered potentially high-risk, and will conduct a study of specific imports to help determine safety compliance.

The CPSC has been lobbying for more funding and power from Congress to increase the number of employees working on product safety and what they are able to do. The agency has faced criticism over the number of toys that were brought into the country and sold in stores and then were recalled.

If you would like to read more about product safety, please visit InjuryBoard's Defective & Dangerous Products information page.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Shannon Weidemann

Disney to Test Toys for Safety

Shannon Weidemann — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 21:44:28 GMT

Due to the large number of recalls involving children's toys and lead paint, the Walt Disney Company has announced that it will begin independently testing its toys. Disney allows other companies to manufacturer toys with their characters. They have hired companies to purchase Disney toys from stores and test them for safety. Mattel was the latest to recall toys due to lead paint and magnets that were not secure and could be swallowed creating a hazard.

He said the ultimate responsibility for safety still lies with companies that license Disney characters for toys.
"But Disney wants to give an added level of scrutiny and assurance to parents that a product with a Disney character has gone through this process," Foster said.
The tests will begin in the next two weeks and will include all categories of products, including toys, jewelry and children's clothing from about 2,000 licensees, including Mattel, which is the largest maker of Disney-related toys.

Toys 'R Us also announced that it is testing the toys they sell in their stores for safety. Mattel has recalled 21 million toys in the last month.

For more information on this subject matter, please refer to the section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Shannon Weidemann

San Jose Jamba Juice Alerts Customers About hepatitis A

Courtney Mills — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 13:43:10 GMT

A female worker at a San Jose, California, Willow Glen Jamba Juice store has developed hepatitis A, announced the chief medical officer for Santa Clara County. She put approximately 4,000 customers who frequented the store during the shifts she worked at risk for the virus.

Hepatitis A is a serious, infectious disease of the liver that is transmitted by oral-fecal passage. The disease can be transmitted by infected food workers with poor hygiene, as could possibly have been the case with this infected Jamba Juice food worker. County authorities concede that the virus could have been transmitted if the infected food worker forgot to wash her hands. There are no reported cases as yet of any Hepatitis A outbreak from the affected Jamba Juice.

Since the woman who was infected with Hepatitis A was working with food for twelve days during the acute stage of the disease (when it is highly contagious), county health authorities in Santa Clara County determined not to take any chances. County health officers are advising that anyone who ate at the San Jose Willow Glen Jamba Juice between August 9 and 16 get inoculated against Hep A. Patrons who came to the Willow Glen Jamba Juice between the 1st and the 8th should watch for symptoms of the disease.

For more information on this subject matter, please refer to the section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Courtney Mills