MINDEN, Nev. -- Forward Foods LLC, the maker of Detour energy bars, filed for bankruptcy protection on Tuesday after a tainted peanut recall by its supplier, Peanut Corp. of America (PCA), forced the company to recall many of its own products on fears of possible salmonella poisoning, said Reuters. Forward Foods, which makes high-protein, snack and meal replacement bars primarily under the Detour name, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, saying that a "significant" amount of its inventory must be condemned. It also rolled out a new "freshness" seal for products made [image-nocss] since the recall.
A salmonella outbreak traced to one of PCA's plants led to one of the biggest product recalls in U.S. history. The salmonella outbreak sickened 600 people, more than half of them children, and may have killed nine people. The contamination has been traced to a PCA plant in Blakely, Ga.
Forward Foods on January 29 had voluntarily recalled all Detour bars that contained roasted peanuts from PCA. Sales of Detour products containing peanut product from PCA made up about 75% of its protein bar sales, the company said in documents filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The company sells its energy bars to health and fitness clubs as well as convenience and grocery stores.
Minden, Nev.-based Forward Foods is primarily owned by private equity firm Emigrant Capital Corp. It employs 52 people and regularly hires an additional 25 temporary workers, according to court documents. It had both assets and liabilities of between $10 million and $50 million, it said in the filing.
Emigrant has agreed to extend $4 million in debtor-in-possession financing to Forward Foods to help to operate under bankruptcy protection, subject to court approval.
CIT Group/Commercial Services Inc and Next Proteins Inc were listed among the largest unsecured creditors, according to court documents.
More than 1,800 products have been recalled since mid-January due to the outbreak, either because they were linked to Peanut Corp or because such links could not be ruled out.
Salmonella is an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections primarily in young children, the elderly and those with weak immune systems.
Peanut Corp filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on February 13.
The case is In re Forward Foods LLC, US Bankruptcy Court, District of Delaware, No. 09-10545.
Forward Foods issued the following letter on February 10:
Dear Detour Partner,
I appreciate the many messages we have received asking when fresh new product will hit your shelves. We are extremely eager to get the award winning flavors that were voluntarily recalled back on your shelves as soon as possible and, in the mean time, filling the gap where possible with other great tasting Detour bars.
As I write, fresh peanuts are arriving and our plant is ready to roll. In a matter of hours we will resume production of the nine flavors affected by the recall. Over the next three weeks we will build inventories throughout the pipeline and I anticipate fresh bars should start hitting shelves before the end of the month.
But our job does not end there. Strong consumer demand at the shelf is critical to our mutual success. I want to share with you the steps we are taking during this recall to exceed consumer service expectations, the response we have received, and the product level messaging we plan to support demand creation on shelf for Detour.
Within 24-hours of initiating the voluntary recall, we launched the Consumer Information Center on our website. Updated regularly, the information center is a complete one-stop recall resource. Knowing that concerned consumers would be most reassured by a live response, we also established a new telephone hotline team. Answered 16 hours a day, 7 days a week, the hotline ensures that our consumers are handled with the care and speed they expect. To date, we have responded to 100% of the over 1,500 calls and emails we have received.
The feedback we are getting is positive and very gratifying.... What do we do next? We want to ensure that our consumers can identify post-recall Detour bars and feel comfortable in selecting them again soon. To do so, every Detour display box produced immediately following the recall will carry the "Fresh Superior Ingredients" seal. The seal will be a clear indication that this previously recalled item is new, safe and made with only the highest-quality ingredients.
Patrick Muldoon, CEO, Detour Bars
Meanwhile, a new national study conducted by the Harvard Opinion Research Program at the Harvard School of Public Health found that the most (93%) of Americans have heard or read about the recent ongoing recall of peanut products. Among those who are aware of the recall, about six in 10 (61%) said they have taken one or more precautions to reduce their risk of getting sick from contaminated peanut products. About one in four said they have checked ingredient lists on foods in the store to make sure they know which products contain peanuts (27%), thrown away foods at home that they think might be on the recall list (25%), stopped ordering foods containing peanuts in restaurants (22%) and stopped eating foods they heard were in the recall (28%), while 15% say they have stopped eating all foods containing peanuts.
The poll also found that among those who are aware of the recall, one in four (25%) mistakenly believed that major national brands of peanut butter are involved in the recall; 70% correctly identify peanut butter crackers as being involved; however, less than half were aware that several other products containing peanuts have been recalled, including some in each of the following food categories: snack bars (49%), cakes, brownies and cookies (45%), pet treats (43%), candy (39%), prepackaged meals (36%), ice cream (27%) and jars or cans of dry-roasted peanuts (23%).
Some 14% of those who were aware of the recall reported having checked the Food & Drug Administration's online list (click here) of foods involved and 19% have looked for more information about the recall. About three-fourths (77%) of those who are aware of the recall did know that it involves contamination by salmonella.
The poll found low levels of public confidence in groups involved in food production and inspection. More than six in 10 Americans expressed only some or very little confidence in food manufacturers (67%) and the government inspections system (62%) to keep food safe. In addition, a slight majority (52%) say they have only some or very little confidence in grocery stores to keep food safe.
Click hereto view charts on the Harvard study.
Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.