General Mills Recalls 10 Million Pounds Of Flour

Only a month after a massive frozen foods recall from CRF Frozen Foods, General Mills announced yesterday that it is voluntarily recalling 10 million pounds of flour because of an E. coli scare. Thirty-eight people in 20 states have become sick between December of last year and early May, and the common link appears to be flour, though E. coli hasn't been found in any General Mills products, The New York Times reports.

However, as Liz Nordlie, president of General Mills Baking division, explains in a statement, "As a leading provider of flour for 150 years, we felt it was important to not only recall the product and replace it for consumers if there was any doubt, but also to take this opportunity to remind our consumers how to safely handle flour."

Harmful E. coli would normally be killed by heat, like by baking a batch of cookies. But a number of the individuals who are sick reportedly ate raw flour. According to a statement from General Mills, the disease "may be potentially linked to Gold Medal flour, Wondra flour, and Signature Kitchens flour (sold in Safeway, Albertsons, Jewel, Shaws, Vons, United, Randalls, and Acme)."

New food safety regulations, as the Times points out, will go into effect this September and will place a larger responsibility on food producers to prevent contamination.

Those looking for more information can contact General Mills at 1-800-230-8103.