Bad nuts traced to Gustine

Recall targets listeria-tainted Baking Classics brand walnuts

By Mike Hughlett
Chicago Tribune

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CHICAGO — A recall of nuts that could be contaminated with listeria has been traced to a Gustine plant, and a small number of those nuts made their way to consumers, John B. Sanfilippo & Son Inc. said Wednesday in a filing with federal securities regulators.

Elgin, Ill.-based Sanfilippo, best known for its Fisher nuts, last week voluntarily recalled walnuts and nut toppings sold to retailers under its Baking Classics brand in 10 states.

The Oct. 9 recall affects walnut halves and pieces in 16-ounce bags and nut topping packaged in 2-ounce bags, and were distributed in Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

Listeria monocytogenes is bacterium that causes listeriosis, a relatively rare but potentially fatal disease. In the United States, about 2,500 people annually contract the disease by eating food contaminated with listeria bacteria, and about 20 percent of them die, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Listeria contamination in nuts is not common and often is associated with meat products. The most common manifestation of listeriosis is meningitis, which has symptoms of high fever, severe headache, neck stiffness and nausea, Sanfilippo said in the securities filing.

In a statement last week, Sanfilippo said it had not received any reports of illnesses from the recalled products. The company couldn't be reached for comment Wednesday on any ensuing reports of illness.

An outside laboratory detected listeria in a test of finished Sanfilippo products sourced from the firm's facility in Gustine. The possibly contaminated nuts totaled 37,000 pounds, of which 3,000 pounds were shipped to retail and food service customers, the filing said.

The majority of those 3,000 pounds that made it to Sanfilippo's customers will be returned to the nut maker. But some potentially contaminated nuts — the filing didn't say how much — made their way to consumers.

Those consumers should not eat the product and return it for a full refund or replacement, Sanfilippo said in the filing.