FDA Warning for Whole Foods
June 14 2016 - 5:10PM
Dow Jones News
Federal regulators issued a warning letter to executives at
Whole Foods Market Inc. over "serious violations" discovered by the
agency during a February inspection of a Massachusetts plant.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said, in a letter last
Wednesday, that Whole Foods had failed to manufacture, package and
store food under conditions required to reduce the potential for
microorganism growth and contamination.
Violations included condensate dripping onto surfaces where food
was being prepared and failure to maintain equipment in proper
conditions.
In a March letter, Whole Foods had said it was taking the
"observations seriously" and was committed to correcting the
problems, according to the FDA. But federal regulators found the
grocer's response inadequate, writing that Whole Foods failed to
mention steps it would take to supervise food processing operations
and compliance going forward.
"We do not consider your response acceptable because you failed
to provide documentation for our review," the FDA wrote, also
citing a lack of backup documentation in Whole Foods' response.
The Austin-based grocer didn't immediately respond to requests
for comment Tuesday.
Whole Foods has been hit with several months of difficult
financial results, with its same-store sales slumping in one of the
worst declines since the recession.
The grocer also paid a fine of $500,000 following an
investigation last year by the New York Department of Consumer
Affairs for overcharging for a sweeping array of prepackaged foods
in New York City. Company executives said there was no intentional
misconduct.
Whole Foods' stock slid after the FDA report surfaced Tuesday,
closing down 2.9% at $32.52. The slump was one of the biggest
one-day percentage drops for the company this year.
Regulators gave Whole Foods until the end of the month to take
action to remedy the FDA's complaints.
Write to Jesse Newman at jesse.newman@wsj.com and Heather Haddon
at heather.haddon@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 14, 2016 16:55 ET (20:55 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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