The Government Analyst Food and Drug Department is asking wholesalers and retailers of foodstuff to remove from sale all products distributed by Peanut Corporation of America and King Nut Company under the brands Parnell’s Pride and King Nut.

According to a press release from the department, this is in the wake of the recent alert by the US Food and Drug Administration after peanut butter was found to be contaminated with the bacteria salmonella typhimurium, causing hundreds of persons to become ill and six deaths, between the period September 3 to December 29, 2008.

The peanut butter in question was sold in bulk to institutions and food producers. According to the release there is a possibility that articles manufactured by these companies might have been imported into Guyana. However, initial checks by officers of the department failed to detect any such product.

Some of the items to be on the lookout for are peanut butter sandwich crackers, peanut butter jelly sandwich crackers, cheese and peanut butter sandwich crackers and peanut butter-chocolate sandwich crackers.

The Analyst Department therefore called on proprietors, managers and supervisors of wholesale outlets, supermarkets and other retail outlets to peruse their shelves and storage facilities for any product containing peanut butter that originated from the US after July 2008. It asked that any suspicious product be held and the department alerted.