From: Satchell, Felicia B Sent: Tuesday, February 11, 2003 10:46 AM To: Kane, Rhonda R.; Nalubola, Ritu; Thompson, Susan Subject: FW: FAAN Product-Related Member Calls, February 3-7, 2003 I have tried once again to redirect these messages to you. Let me know if I messed up anything else. Thanks Felicia -----Original Message----- From: The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network [mailto:faan@foodallergy.org] Sent: Monday, February 10, 2003 5:22 PM To: Satchell, Felicia B Subject: FAAN Product-Related Member Calls, February 3-7, 2003 As always, everyone who calls FAAN about a product is instructed to call the manufacturer if they haven't already done so. Nabisco Ritz Crackers - this e-mail from (privacy) is another incident of a commonly-reported problem: I am the parent of a child with a peanut allergy. I am diligent about reading ingredients on boxes in order to ensure that my child does not ingest something that has been contaminated with peanuts. This afternoon I opened a new sleeve of Ritz crackers (brand seal 04402808) and was about to give my son a cracker when I noticed something strange on the side of the cracker. My worst fears were realized when I tasted the site of the strange substance. It was indeed peanut butter. I am obviously extremely upset about this discovery. I almost endangered my child's life by innocently giving him a product that has NO DISCLAIMER regarding potential cross contamination with peanuts. Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites - (privacy) called to report that her 13-year-old daughter, who is allergic to tree nuts but not peanuts, had a reaction. The product, made by Taste of Nature, Inc. indicates that it contains "traces of peanuts". (privacy) saw this, and since tree nuts are not peanuts, she interpreted the fact that they warned about one allergen as a good indication that the manufacturer was careful and that the product would be safe. Her daughter took a few bites and said she felt funny in the throat. The reaction was mild compared to others she has had, but it frightened them and caused them to rush to the doctor's office. After taking Benadryl and Zyrtec she was fine. When (privacy) called the company at 1-800-89 TASTE to report the reaction, she was told that the product is made on the same line as a product containing walnuts and "that's why we put 'traces of peanuts' on the label." She still has the remaining product and would like to have it tested for contamination with walnut or another tree nut. Ready Sponge - Member (privacy) reported that her son, who is allergic to milk and egg, reacted to a bagel she bought for him at a chain called Bagelz. This was a bakery-kind of situation, not a packaged food. She asked if the bagel was dairy free and they told her it was. But, when she asked to read the list of ingredients after the reaction, it contained "ready sponge" and upon further investigation she found out the first ingredient of ready sponge is whey. I have heard of this before in other bakery settings, but have not heard of "ready sponge" being listed on a food label in a retail setting. Oreo Coffee 'n Crème - member (privacy) sent this e-mail: This past Sunday, I allowed our seven year-old (peanut allergic) daughter to have a cookie after church. This is something I never allow her to do; she is fine about waiting for a treat when we get home. This time, I broke our own rules. I let her have an Oreo because it was on a plate with other Oreo cookies and Oreos have always been on our OK list. I have spoken with Nabisco (in the past) and been assured that Oreos were peanut-free. Nabisco has always done allergy labeling. We spent the afternoon and evening in the emergency room after our daughter experienced anaphylaxsis. We used our Epi-Pen for the first time. Her only previous exposure was her first exposure as a toddler. I thought that the Oreo must have touched another cookie, hence the reaction. I walked down the cookie aisle in the grocery yesterday and was astounded to see that it was in fact the Oreo that caused the reaction. The Oreo was the Coffee& Cream variety and it lists peanut flour as an ingredient! There is also NO ALLERGY LABELING. Please warn your subscribers that that companies change ingredients and past information is not reliable. I am very disappointed in Nabisico for including peanut flour in a non-peanut cookie and also for the lack of allergy labeling. Ultimately, it was my fault that our daughter ate the cookie. Brach's Candies Small Conversation Hearts - this e-mail is from (privacy): My son is allergic to peanuts and tree nuts. My son's pre-school asked me to buy some safe candy for Valentines. So, I bought Brach's candies 'small conversation hearts'. I called a 1800 # off of the Brach's internet site and left a message. To make a long story short, I got a phone call back from a representative from Brach's saying that they were made in a plant that contains peanuts. The woman on the phone sounded as if she wasn't really sure of her answer. When I asked her why the package wasn't labelled to show that it was made with nuts, she had no comment. Feeling a bit frustrated. I called their main headquarters in Tennessee. They gave me the name and number of (privacy) ( phone number 1-630-271-8416) who was the Manager of Customer Relations. He told me that the conversation hearts were not made in a facility with peanuts. That at one point they were, but not anymore. But, just in case, I should make the teachers aware of how to react in case of an allergic reaction. (What kind of answer is that???) .... Then he went on to tell me that, "it is just too expensive to change and update their labelling to reflect weather or not a product was made in a plant with nuts". That I should always call and make sure any of their products are safe, which I do anyway (but, do all people with allergies?). That it is not their responsibility to properly label an ingredient label . He said that, "someday they will get there and be up to date with listing allergy information on their labels". He also said that he has been though some training on food allergies. Well, I can see that was effective... NOT! - This man has no clue that his inability to understand allergies could kill someone. I find this disturbing since their negligence could cause someone to die that is allergic to nuts. I just can't believe that they are so behind the times. Who runs a company that makes candy for children and doesn't label their products to show ingredients or allergy information (made in a plant that processes nuts...)? Isn't there 3 million people in the USA with this allergy? Bisquick Complete Mix Cinnamon Swirl Bisciuts - (privacy) called to tell us this now lists egg in the ingredients but used to be safe for her egg-allergic child. Saco Real Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunks - this e-mail is from (privacy): I thought you might want to inform your members about undeclared peanuts in Saco Real Semi-sweet Chocolate Chunks used for baking. I called the company to verify that this product wasn't processed on equipment that also processed peanuts, and sure enough it is. The company says they will be putting that information on the packaging in the future. The phone number is 1-800-373-7226, the website is www.sacofoods.com and e-mail is askus@sacofoods.com. _______________________________________ Debbie Scherrer, Member Communications The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network 10400 Eaton Place, Suite 107 Fairfax, VA 22030 1-800-929-4040 Phone: 703-691-3179 Fax: 703-691-2713 http://www.foodallergy.org/ _______________________________________