ADM flour recall expands: King Arthur pulls more bags for possible E. coli

FDA says strain matches E. coli that prompted flour recalls over the summer

Recalls of flour milled by ADM Milling Company continue. The FDA notified the company that samples of flour from two production lots manufactured in late 2018 tested positive for E. coli.

King Arthur Flour Inc. recalled new lots of unbleached all-purpose flour milled by the company, an expansion of the bags called back this summer.

The FDA confirmed that the E.coli O26 strain in the samples matches the one previously found in flour produced at ADM’s Buffalo, N.Y., mill. The earlier finding led to recalls of Aldi store brand flour, Brand Castle glass jars of cookie and brownie mix, and two lots of Pillsbury Best bread flour. Separately, General Mills recalled some Gold Medal unbleached flour in September for possible E. coli contamination.

“Out of an abundance of caution, ADM is voluntarily recalling all flour produced with the same hard red wheat source as these impacted lots,” the announcement from Archer Daniels Midland Company says. The company is in the process of notifying all retail, large pack and bulk customers.

The recalled King Arthur flour went to retailers and distributors nationwide, and the company sold it through its website, catalog and store in Norwich, Vt.

The recall includes 5-pound bags with select best by dates in December 2019 and January 2020 and 25-pound bags sold at Costco. The Costco bags have UPC code 071012012503 and best by dates listed as 12/04/19, 12/10/19, 12/20/19, 01/07/20 or 01/15/20.

“We are taking this voluntary precautionary step because of the potential presence of E. coli 026, which was discovered through sampling,” King Arthur Flour says in its recall notice. The company had not received any confirmed illness reports at the time of the recall announcement.

King Arthur Flour and ADM Milling reminded people that flour must be thoroughly cooked before eating. “The flour milling process involves grinding and processing wheat, which is a raw agricultural commodity that is grown under a wide range of environmental conditions,” ADM Milling says.

People with the recalled King Arthur flour should throw it away or return it to the store for a refund. To see a full list of best by dates and lot codes, go to the company’s announcement. You can request a refund through that site too.

Anyone with questions may call King Arthur Flour’s consumer hotline at 866-797-9178 or email productrecall@kingarthurflour.com.

Or people may call ADM Milling at 800-422-1688 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CDT weekdays.

Rose Shilling is a previous managing editor of Food Engineering Magazine. She wrote feature stories on a variety of topics and tracked the food packaging industry. A journalist with an editing background at news services and newspapers, she also has driven editorial projects in health care and higher education.

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