Garden Fresh Gourmet, a salsa and deli food manufacturer based in Ferndale, says it has received hundreds of inquiries from concerned customers about the brand’s safety after learning about a recall of products manufactured by a company with a similar name.
“We’ve done our best to clarify via our own website and social media … that our salsa, hummus, dips and tortilla chip products are perfectly safe to eat,” says Jack Aronson, founder and CEO of Garden Fresh Gourmet. “Despite our best effort to clarify the issue, the two brand names are so close that we fear there is still a great amount of confusion out there.”
The company in question, Milwaukee-based Garden Fresh Foods, has recalled several food products since September. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says that the some of the products — produced between Sept. 5 and Oct. 16 and distributed in several states including Michigan — may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in children, elderly people, or those with a weakened immune system.
Of the items recalled, none of the products are produced or related to Garden Fresh Gourmet, says Aronson. He adds the company has an unblemished record of food safety and is certified by the FDA as well as the Safe Quality Food Institute.
“We wish nothing but the best of outcomes for Garden Fresh Foods of Wisconsin, and the safety of all the consumers who have purchased their products,” Aronson says.
For more information about the Garden Fresh Foods recall, click here.
