E Coli Confirmed In Nestlé Toll House Cookie Dough Says FDA

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Main Category: Infectious Diseases / Bacteria / Viruses
Also Included In: GastroIntestinal / Gastroenterology;  Nutrition / Diet;  Regulatory Affairs / Drug Approvals
Article Date: 30 Jun 2009 - 1:00 PDT

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The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday, June 29, that it had found E. coli O157:H7 in a sample of prepackaged Nestlé Toll House refrigerated cookie dough that had been collected at the Nestlé factory in Danville, Virginia four days earlier.

David Acheson, FDA's assistant commissioner for food safety told the press that investigators didn't find the E coli in the factory itself or on equipment in the factory but in a tub of chocolate cookie dough that had been made there in February. The tub carried an expiry date of June 10, he said, according to a report by the Washington Post.

E. coli is a food borne bacterium that can cause serious illness.

The product affected is one of dozens of prepackaged Nestlé Toll House refrigerated cookie dough products currently under recall. The recall followed a joint warning to cosumers by the FDA and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on 19 June warning them not to eat any varieties of the product because of risk of contamination by E coli.

The warning was prompted by an epidemiological investigation by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and a number of state and local health authorities.

Last week the CDC reported that 69 people in 29 states have been infected with the outbreak strain. 34 of the infected people have been hospitalized, 9 with a severe complication called hemolytic uremic syndrome (a disease that destroys red blood cells), and no deaths.

However, one final test remains to confirm that the strain of E coli that is causing the outbreak is the same one that was found in the cookie dough sample retrieved from the Nestlé factory, said the FDA.

One of the mysteries surrounding this investigation is the fact that none of the ingredients is normally considered a source of E coli, a bacterium that usually resides in the gut of cattle. The cookie dough comprises mostly eggs, flour, chocolate and butter, a list that one would normally associate with a salmonella rather an E coli outbreak.

In the meantime, Nestlé "has fully cooperated with the FDA and CDC investigation" and has recalled all potentially affected products, said the FDA announcement.

Information released by Nestlé when they issued the recall for 30,000 cases of product on 19 June said they were taking this action out of "an abundance of caution".

Nestlé strongly advised consumers that they should never eat raw cookie dough (the product is intended for baking at home), and that this warning also appears prominently on the packaging.

If you have bought any of the products on the recall list, then please don't consume them but return them to where you bought them and get a full refund, said Nestlé.

The products being recalled include all varieties of Nestlé TOLL HOUSE refrigerated Cookie Bar Dough, Cookie Dough Tub; Cookie Dough Tube; Limited Edition Cookie Dough items; Seasonal Cookie Dough and Ultimates Cookie Bar Dough.

The manufacturer stressed that no other Nestlé TOLL HOUSE products are affected, and has issued a full list of those included in the recall, with their varieties.

-- Full list of recalled Nestlé TOLL HOUSE products.

Sources: FDA, Nestlé, Washington Post.

Written by: Catharine Paddock, PhD
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today