Jif recall prompts Disney World to pull peanut butter treats from menus

The impact of the Jif recall is reverberating at Disney World, which is no longer offering peanut butter-laden snacks at its Florida theme park due to shortages of the product. 

The holes in Disney’s menu offerings come as federal health officials caution Americans against eating a range of baked goods, sandwiches, candy, trail mix and ready-to-eat salad products made with recalled Jif peanut butter, with a growing number of snacks pulled from stores and vending machines nationwide amid a multi-state outbreak of salmonella. 

At least 16 people from 12 states have been infected, with two hospitalized, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday in an update on the outbreak. Five out of five people reported eating peanut butter and four of the five reported eating Jif before becoming ill, according to the CDC’s review of epidemiological information.

“The great Peanut Butter shortage of 2022 continues,” proclaimed Orlando, Florida-based Walt Disney World’s Gideon’s Bakehouse in a Facebook post on Saturday.

The eatery in Disney Springs took to Instagram to explain that the recall had slowed bulk stock of peanut butter coming into Florida, leaving it in “a pickle” as it needs hundreds of pounds a day for its peanut butter-based desserts. While the treats are not currently available, its Nitro PB Cold Brew still is, as the beverage comes from peanuts from a Georgia farm, not peanut butter, the eatery explained.

The Magic Kingdom has also pulled its peanut butter sauce from the menu at the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor, leaving just hot fudge and caramel toppings on its snack menu, a change noted by The Disney Food Blog and Walt Disney World News Today.

Walt Disney did not respond to a request for comment.

Th Jif recall has fueled a slew of related moves, including a recall of Rich’s chocolate peanut butter cups sold at nearly 200 candy and ice cream shops nationwide between November 11, 2021, and January 23, 2022.  

The J.M. Smucker Co. on May 20 recalled multiple Jif brand peanut butter types sold across the U.S. and in Canada, including creamy, crunchy, natural and reduced fat. The outbreak strain of Salmonella Senftenberg was found in a J.M. Smucker plant in Lexington, Kentucky, according to the Food and Drug Administration. 

In the days since, more than a dozen companies have recalled products containing Jif. 

The actual number of sick people and affected states is likely higher, as some individuals recover without being tested, according to the CDC. “This product has a very long shelf life, so be sure to check any Jif peanut butter you have at home to make sure it has not been recalled,” it added.

Salmonella can cause symptoms including fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. It can be serious and sometimes fatal to children, as well as the frail and elderly. Most people who get Salmonella develop symptoms between six hours and six days after being exposed to the bacteria.

All of the recalled peanut butter include the numbers 1274425-2140425, with “425” at the end of the first seven digits. 

In addition to jars of Jif, snacks containing the recalled peanut butter are now attracting regulatory scrutiny, with 16 separate but related recalls made in the past 10 days or so. 

Giant Eagle recalled multiple bakery items containing peanut butter sold at three Pennsylvania supermarkets in Ebensburg, Indiana, and Northern Cambria due to potential salmonella contamination, the company said in a notice posted Saturday by the FDA. The recalled items involved 120 transactions and most people who purchased them had been contacted directly, Giant Eagle stated. 

Safeway Fresh Foods is recalling more than 1,200 cases of Quick Chek branded Apple and Peanut Butter Shack trays distributed in New Jersey to Quick Chek retail stores, the Vineland, New Jersey-based company said.

AG Specialty Foods of Happy Valley, Oregon, is recalling four perishable products sold in Oregon and Washington because they contain Jif peanut butter, according to a notice posted on Friday by the FDA.The potentially tainted items include peanut butter and jam sandwiches and snack packs and boxes with use-by-dates ranging from May 16, 2022, to June 3, 2022.

Wawa is removing two products sold at its stores — Wawa Apple & Peanut Butter Dipper and Jif Creamy Peanut Butter, according to a notice posted by the FDA.

Euphoria Chocolate of Eugene, Oregon, is recalling truffles and meltaways containing Jif and sold by retailers and supermarkets throughout the state from Feb. 17, 2022, to May 20, 2022.

Bix Produce of Little Canada, Minnesota, on Thursday recalled 5-ounce packages of “Egg and Cheese Curds Power Box” and “Egg and Cheese Curds snack box” containing the recalled peanut butter. The snack boxes were sold by retailers in five states: Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

Walmart-branded fudge made with Jif peanut butter and sold at stores nationwide is being recalled by Fudgeamentals of Melville, New York, the company said in a notice posted by the FDA on Wednesday. 

Fresh Del Monte is recalling fresh-cut fruit and vegetable products containing ready-to-eat Jif peanut butter sold by retailers including 7-Eleven nationwide, the Florida company stated in a separate notice. 

Walnut Creek, Ohio-based Coblentz Chocolate Co. is recalling sweets including chocolate, fudge, caramel corn and assorted creams containing the recalled Jif peanut butter sold nationwide from November 12, 2021, to May 21, 2022. The company has ceased using Jif peanut butter, Coblentz said in a recall notice posted on Tuesday by the FDA. 

Indianapolis, Indiana-based Garden Cut on Tuesday recalled products combining apple slices or cut up celery with peanut butter and distributed in seven states: Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia and Wisconsin. 

Mary’s Harvest Fresh Foods of Portland, Oregon, on Tuesday recalled apple and celery slices combined with 1.5-ounce portions of Jif To Go Creamy Peanut Butter distributed to stores in two states — Oregon and Washington. 

Spring, Texas-based Country Fresh is recalling an array of fresh-cut fruit snack trays and fruit snack cups containing the recalled Jif peanut butter and sold under brands including Giant, Market32, Snack Fresh, Snack Sensations and Wegmans. 

The products were sold by retailers in Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, D.C., and West Virginia, Country Fresh said.

Cargill on Monday said it is recalling 795 8-ounce boxes of candy and other snacks made with the recalled peanut butter, according to a notice posted by the FDA. 

That includes milk and dark chocolate-covered peanut butter Ritz crackers, peanut butter meltaways, peanut butter eggs and fudge sold locally through the Wilbur Chocolate retail store in Lititz, Pennsylvania, and online at Wilburbuds.com. 

Taher Inc. of Plymouth, Minnesota, is recalling 6.3-ounce packages of “Fresh Seasons Power Packs” containing the potentially contaminated Jif peanut butter. The packs were sold in retail stores and vending machines in Minnesota and western Wisconsin, according to the company. 

Albertsons Companies said it was recalling 11 store-prepared products including mini peanut butter cream pies and sliced apples with peanut butter sold at stores including ACME, Albertsons, Eagle, Jewel-Osco, Safeway Tom Thumb and Vons (see the full list of products and stores here).

Meantime, Giant Eagle is recalling GetGo branded apple slices with peanut butter sold through May 13 by GetGo stations in Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The snacks bear the UPC code: 30034 93770 6 and best-if-used-by dates through May 29, 2022. 

The CDC estimates that about 1.3 million Americans are infected with salmonella each year, with 26,500 hospitalized and 420 dying as a result.