A renewed public warning today from the FDA says a salmonella threat from certain imported tahini products is ongoing. Some of the recalled products may have label information in Hebrew only, making them difficult for many U.S. consumers to identify.

Although only five confirmed Salmonella Concord infections have been reported to federal officials, the recalled tahini products have long shelf lives with expiration dates well into 2021.

The FDA found Salmonella Concord in a sample of tahini collected at the point of import. That sample was of Baron’s brand tahini manufactured by Achdut Ltd. The FDA reported whole genome sequencing was used to determine that the Salmonella Concord in the Baron’s tahini was the outbreak strain.

Manufacturer Achdut Ltd. in Ari’el, Israel distributed the products under several brand names, complicating consumers’ ability to determine whether they have the recalled food in their homes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC is working on the outbreak investigation with the Food and Drug Administration.

“Return any recalled tahini products to the store for a refund or throw them away. Throw out any food made with recalled tahini, such as hummus. Even if some tahini was eaten and no one got sick, do not eat it,” the CDC warned in its most recent outbreak, posted on Nov. 28, 2018.

“ Some recalled products may not have dates or may have labels written in Hebrew. If you do not know whether the tahini product has been recalled, do not eat it and throw it away.”

The warning posted today by the FDA reinforced that advice from the CDC.

“The FDA is advising consumers not to eat recalled Achva, Achdut, Soom, S&F, and Pepperwood brand tahini and Soom brand Chocolate Sweet Tahini Halva Spread (with the) lot code 071318CH (and) with expiration dates ranging from April 7, 2020, to May 21, 2020, and Baron’s brand tahini with the expiration date of May 5, 2021.” according to the agency’s update.

“Some brands of tahini manufactured by Achdut Ltd. may lack specific dates … Consumers who have purchased a tahini product and are uncertain of wher the product was manufactured or cannot identify the brand by lot codes or expiration dates should discard the product or return the food to the store for a refund.”

More product information, and photos of the recalled product labels can be found in Achdut’s recall announcement. The FDA has posted a list of the recalled tahini products. The public can find Soom Foods’ recall announcement by clicking on this link.

To identify some of the recalled tahini products, consumers should look for the following label information:

12 oz. Chocolate Sweet Tahini Halva Spread with the lot code 071318CH. Packed from tahini lot 18-123; and tahini in the following sizes and types;

40 lb. Organic Tahini;

40 lb. Premium Tahini;

16 oz. Premium Tahini;

16 oz. Organic Tahini; and

11 oz. Premium Tahini.

The recalled tahini products have lot codes ranging from 18-097 through 18-141. Some of the above listed products were included in the original voluntary recall by Achdut Ltd. on Nov. 27, 2018. The FDA posted the Feb. 8  outbreak updat “to ensure the widest possible dissemination to the public.”