Noodle producer shuts after unsanitary inspection findings
A consent decree of permanent injunction was entered against Kun Wo Food Products Inc. (Kun Wo) and co-owners, Zi Xing Liu and Zi Cheng Liu. The firm processed rice noodles.
The defendants agreed to settle the litigation and to be bound by a permanent injunction.
Potential resumption steps
Under the permanent injunction, if they want to resume operations, they must inform FDA, take steps to improve manufacturing practices, and then receive written approval from the agency.
The firm must get an independent expert to develop a pathogen control program, a independent laboratory to conduct analyses of the environment and food products, and provide employee training on sanitary food handling techniques.
Benjamin Mizer, principal deputy assistant attorney, said it would pursue companies and individuals responsible for production of food in unsanitary conditions.
“Kun Wo Food Products was repeatedly informed that the sanitation practices at its facility were deficient.”
US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspections at Kun Wo in 2015 and 2016 found Listeria monocytogenes (L. mono) in the environment, and rice noodles at risk of contamination from Bacillus cereus, Salmonella, E. coli, and Staphylococcus aureus.
“The FDA has an obligation to protect public health, and we will take action when we see a company repeatedly violating food safety regulations,” said Melinda K. Plaisier, the FDA’s associate commissioner for regulatory affairs.
Inspection findings
FDA said investigators saw the company allowed employees to touch food without cleaning hands after handling dirty machinery and equipment. It also failed to take adequate measures to protect food against the risk of contamination from other sources, including pests and condensation.
“According to the complaint, the most recent inspection also found that condensate dripped from a hose suspended from the ceiling into the vat containing soaking rice. Also, as noted in the complaint, condensate dripped from a copper pipe, with a green and black film on its surface, into a grinder containing rice for processing.”
After the 2015 inspection, Kun Wo made what the FDA called ‘inadequate and unsuccessful’ corrections to its processes and facility issues. A 2016 inspection found continuing and ongoing violations of current Good Manufacturing Practice regulations.
“In addition, as noted in the complaint, during a 2015 inspection, FDA documented employees using the vat containing soaking rice to rinse their bare hands, rags and buckets after using the rags and buckets to clean the production area with detergent.”
