‘No excuse’ for insects found at Macon cereal plant, owner says after FDA warning

The Federal Drug Administration has issued a warning letter to California Cereal Products in Macon after multiple flying and beetle-type insects were seen “throughout the manufacturing facility” during an inspection earlier this year.

“Based on FDA’s inspectional findings, we determined that the dry cereal products manufactured in your facility ... have been prepared packed, or held under insanitary conditions whereby they may have become contaminated with filth, “ causing a health concern, the letter said.

California Cereal Products’ co-founder and CEO Robert Sterling Savely said in an email Tuesday that none of their cereal products leave the plant contaminated.

He said there’s an extensive process to ensure food safety, and that samples sent to an outside lab have come back negative for Salmonella and E. coli for the 12 years the plant has operated in Macon.

According to the Nov. 19 FDA warning letter, the cereal manufacturer failed to take effective measures to exclude pests from the plant to protect against food contamination.

“During the inspection on July 8 and 9, 2019, the FDA investigator noted evidence of live insect activity throughout your manufacturing facility, including the trash compacting area which was directly open to the production area where cereal products are manufactured,” the letter said.

The problem with the bugs was eliminated immediately, Savely said.

Also, the FDA’s statement that the insects were seen “throughout the manufacturing facility” was an exaggeration, Savely said.

“The plant is 360,000 square feet, and the areas that they’re noting is less than 6 percent,” Savely said. “So, it’s not throughout the facility. That was a bit of an overstatement in our opinion.”

According to the FDA warning letter, more than 10 flying and more than 10 live beetle-type insects were observed in the mill room, where post-cook steps occur. The mill room is about 6,439 square feet, according to the company.

“Insect trails and live beetle type insects too numerous to count were observed beneath dryer ... and live beetle type insects too numerous to count were observed beneath the framework of the blower used to transfer the cooked cereal products.”

In its response to the FDA, the company said, “There is no excuse for the condition that the auditor found in the mill room.”

The plant now has three Georgia licensed pest control operators, when at the time of the inspection it had one. Also, the mill room “now has its own designated sanitation person on first shift to do nothing but clean for eight hours,” the response said.

Savely noted an inspection by another agency, the Georgia Department of Agricultural, in September found the plant to be clean.

The company said it responded to the FDA in an August email, but it was not received and that the letter of warning should never have been published. Peter Cassell, an FDA spokesman, said the FDA stands by its warning letter.

This is not the first time the Macon facility has come under federal scrutiny.

After a December 2013 inspection of the production facility, the company was cited by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration for nine serious safety and health violations for exposing full-time and temporary workers to electrical, fall and noise hazards. Penalties totaled $40,600.

California Cereal Products offers a range of organic, gluten-free and rice flour products, according to its website. The company’s administrative headquarters and its west coast manufacturing plant are located in Oakland, California.

This story was originally published December 11, 2019 at 5:30 AM.