If you have a peanut allergy, put down the donut. Hostess Brands has announced a recall of 710,000 cases of some varieties of their iconic snack cakes and donuts. This voluntary recall comes after a recall by Grain Craft over flour with undeclared peanut residue.
Don’t worry about your personal flour supply – baking is still safe. Grain Craft only sells to other companies, not directly to consumers. The contamination was discovered in April by a customer who traced the peanut protein they found in a cookie back to the flour. As a result, Grain Craft stopped distributing their soft red winter wheat flour on April 30.
But now Grain Craft’s customers have to deal with the fallout. Many Hostess Brands products are produced using Grain Craft flour including Ding Dongs, Chocodiles, and Zingers.
What To Avoid
Photo courtesy of Ian Sane on Flickr
The products currently being recalled include single-serve snack cakes and donuts, multipack boxes, and bagged donuts. They were sold to grocery stores, convenience stores, and other merchandisers through the United States. But don’t think you can just cross the border to get your cream filling fix because the recall has been issued in Mexico, too.
Hostess has emphasized that the recall only applies to specific varieties and batches. They are trying to assure their customers about their other products. The full list of recalled snack cakes and donuts including batch numbers can be found on the Hostess Brands company announcement via the US Food and Drug Administration.
The Risk Factor
Photo courtesy of desegura89 on Flickr
Hostess claims that the recall was ordered “out of an abundance of caution.” However, so far, two reports of children with peanut allergies suffering an immediate allergic reaction after eating a Hostess donut have been confirmed.
The amount of peanut exposure in the contaminated flour is considered low. Hostess claims that the amount potentially present in their products is unlikely to cause negative health affects in the vast majority of peanut allergic consumers.
Still, if you have a peanut allergy or sensitivity and have purchased an affected product, why take the chance? Hostess recommends discarding it or you can return it to the place of purchase for a full refund. And hopefully soon, we can all safely enjoy these classic junk foods.