Sept. 29 Update:

A Letter from Our CEO,

Everyone at Pride of San Juan is deeply disturbed by the recent outbreak of e. coli regarding fresh spinach that was packaged by Natural Selection Foods. Our hearts and prayers go out to those families affected by this outbreak.

My family and I have always worked hard to be a leader in food safety and it has been my ongoing mission to grow healthy fresh produce. Our farms and facilities have consistently received “Superior” level ratings for the last five years from mulitple independent labs like Primus and AIB. We perform inspections regularly on our products and fields as part of our ongoing food safety program.

Upon hearing of the first outbreak, we immediately tested all our fields, ground water and soil for problems and all results have been negative. We continue to assist the FDA in their work to identify the source of the infection including giving them full access to our fields, equipment, personnel and our food safety programs.

As of today, the FDA has made no official comment on the source of the contamination. We have always been extremely aggressive in preventing food born illnesses and food safety and will continue our efforts of constant monitoring and seeking ways to grow safe and healthy produce. If you have any specific questions, please email them to: info@prideofsanjuan.com or call us at (831) 634-4100.

Sincerely,

Stephen Wyrick
President and Founder
Pride of San Juan, Inc.

FACTS:

  • Pride of San Juan routinely inspects equipment, water, fields and product as part of its ongoing food safety program.

  • Pride of San Juan has active comprehensive and documented food safety, Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) programs

  • Upon hearing of the spinach related outbreak, Pride of San Juan hired independent food safety laboratory, Primus Labs Inc. to perform soil, plant and water tests on all suspected fields. All results have been negative.

  • Pride of San Juan utilizes independent third party inspection and review companies to monitor and test its programs including field, equipment and procedure reviews.

  • Pride of San Juan has openly assisted the FDA inspectors in their search for the outbreak source including access to all documentation, lab tests, personnel, equipment and fields.


 

A Statement from Pride of San Juan, Inc. Regarding Package Spinach Recall

September 18, 2006

To our Valued Pride of San Juan and Emeril’s Gourmet Produce Customers,

Natural Selection Foods LLC has initiated a voluntary recall of all packaged fresh spinach and fresh spinach containing products that Natural Selection Foods produced and packaged with a “Best Before:" date of August 18 through October 1, 2006.  Given the size and scope of Natural Selection Foods business portfolio, this recall impacts 28 different brands sold in the United States, Canada and Mexico; and includes certain Emeril’s Gourmet Produce products.

As a precautionary measure, consumers and retailers should dispose of all Pride of San Juan and Emeril’s Gourmet Produce branded packages containing fresh spinach.  This includes Emeril’s Baby Spinach, Organic Baby Spinach, Traditional Spring Mix, Herb Spring Mix, Kicked Up Spring Mix and Ah Wasabi Spring Mix with a “Best Before ” date on or before October 1, 2006 as well as Pride of San Juan Baby Spinach and Spring Mix for the same dates. Products that do not contain spinach are not part of the Natural Selection Foods recall.

For regular updates on the broader recall you can visit the following websites:

 - Food and Drug Administration:   www.fda.gov
- Natural Selection Foods:  www.ebfarm.com

Consumers with additional questions may call us at: (888) 454-7765.

Pride of San Juan Inc has been dedicated to growing and harvesting safe and healthy products. Pride of San Juan is committed to assisting the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s investigation.