The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is warning Alaskans about food that may be contaminated with botulism. Processing malfunctions at a Castleberry's Food Company plant in Georgia that resulted in the contamination of canned human and pet food existed longer than initially thought and officials this week expanded a botulism warning and recall to include Alaska. Brenda Duty with DEC's Food Safety and Sanitation Program in Fairbanks says bacteria-caused food born illness is rare in the U.S.A long list of potentially botulism tainted products, some of which may be in Alaska, include everything from chili to barbecue sauce sold under the Castleberry, Kroger and several other name brands, as well as some varieties of canned dog food with the Natural Balance label.Dan Bross, KUAC - Fairbanks (read by Lori Townsend, APRN)
- July 24 press release from the DEC: Health Alert: Botulism Poisoning Warning Expanded (PDF)