Good Earth Tea just announced that it is voluntarily recalling a limited amount of its Caffeine Free Original blend due to the possible presence of the dangerous, sometimes deadly, <"https://www.yourlawyer.com/practice_areas/food_poisoning">Salmonella pathogen.
Salmonella is an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems, such as those with HIV/AIDS or who are undergoing chemotherapy treatment. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella poisoning often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with the Salmonella pathogen can result in the organism entering the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis, and arthritis.
Good Earth announced that it is issuing this voluntary recall notification out of an abundance of caution based on an instance discovered through routine microbial testing in which a minor ingredient had a positive result for Salmonella. The recall is isolated to two retailers and to Caffeine Free Original blend only.
The affected blend was only distributed to a limited number of Costco retail locations in California, and Trader Joe’s retail locations in California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, and Pennsylvania. All affected product has been, or is in the process of being, removed from store shelves. Good Earth said it is working closely with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and its customers on this matter.
The tea subject to this voluntary recall is limited to the following blend having UPC Codes with Best By Dates of 18AUG12 to 02SEP12 respectively:
• Good Earth Caffeine Free Original-25 count sold at Costco (UPC 2701830401); as part of the Costco 3-pack (UPC 27018 30169)
• Good Earth Caffeine Free Original-18 count sold at Trader Joe’s (UPC 27018301356)
While no illness related to this voluntary recall has been reported, to date, any potential health risk is significantly reduced when following the printed brewing instructions on the package. Consumers who have purchased these products should discard them or return them to the place of purchase for a refund. Of note, Salmonella poisoning can take a number of days to manifest itself.
Consumers with questions may contact the company at 1-888-625-8227 between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, Monday to Friday.
