'Slim Fast' Recalls All Shakes, Diet Drinks (All Liquid Products)

[MuffyBee]

http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/slim-fast-recalls-millions-shakes-diet-drinks/story?id=9251524


'Slim Fast' Recalls All Shakes, Diet Drinks
Unilever Says All Its Liquid Products May Be Affected By Non-Lethal Toxin
By BRIAN HARTMAN
Dec. 4, 2009

Slim Fast is recalling every last one of its popular diet drinks over concern they may be contaminated with bacteria that can cause moderate food poisoning.
All cans and cartons of ready-to-drink Slim Fast products are affected, "regardless of flavor, best-by date, lot code or UPC number," the recall notice reads.

Unilever, which makes Slim Fast, said the recall was prompted by "quality testing" that turned up Bacillus cereus, a toxin that can cause nausea and diarrhea but that is not life-threatening.

A Food and Drug Administration official said the inspection that uncovered the B. cereus was conducted after several consumers complained to the company. The official said FDA has received "a handful of complaints from time to time about this product but not recently."

[MuffyBee]

http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20091204/all-slim-fast-cans-recalled

All Slim-Fast Cans Recalled
Possible Bacterial Contamination Spurs Recall of All Ready-to-Drink Slim-Fast Canned Products
By Miranda Hitti
WebMD Health News
Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

Dec. 4, 2009 -- All Slim-Fast ready-to-drink canned products are being recalled because of possible contamination with Bacillus cereus, a bacterium that may cause diarrhea and possibly nausea and/or vomiting.

Unilever United States, Inc. issued the voluntary recall in cooperation with the FDA.

"The probability of serious adverse health consequences is remote," states a Unilever news release. Unilever says it issued the recall "out of an abundance of caution" based on its quality testing of Slim-Fast ready-to-drink (RTD) products in cans.

The recall involves all ready-to-drink Slim-Fast products sold in cans, regardless of flavor, "Best-By" date, lot code, or UPC number.

The recall doesn't include any other Slim-Fast products, such as powdered shakes, meal bars, or snack bars.

The recalled cans are sold individually or packaged in paperboard cartons containing four, six, or 12 steel cans that are marked "11 FL OZ (325 mL)" each.

Unilever urges people to immediately discard Slim-Fast ready-to-drink products in cans and call the company at 800-896-9479 for a full refund. Unilever's Consumer Services Center is open Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern time. A recorded message is available around the clock, every day.

Unilever states that it "is in the process of identifying and correcting the production issue, and will resume production and shipping of the product when the issue has been addressed and corrected."