| U.S. Food and Drug Administration |
FDA Talk Paper, April 27, 2001
Solgar Vitamin and Herb Company Recalls Solgar's Digestive Aid 100's Dietary Supplements Because of Possible Salmonella Contamination
Solgar Vitamin and Herb Company of Leonia, New Jersey, is recalling 754
bottles of Solgar's Digestive Aid 100's dietary supplements, because they have
the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella, an organism which can cause
serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly
people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with
Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea,
vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella
can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more
severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms),
endocarditis and arthritis.
Bottles of Solgar's Digestive Aid 100's were distributed from March 30, 2001
to April 20, 2001, to retail stores nationwide and in some foreign countries,
including the United Kingdom, France and Israel.
The product comes in brown bottles with yellow labels that have an orange
stripe on the bottom. The bottles being recalled are marked with lot numbers
31993 or 30957 that are printed above the expiration date on the bottle neck.
The label reads in part, "Solgar Digestive Aid - Dietary Supplement - 100
Tablets - Sugar and Starch free."
No illnesses from this product have been reported to date.
The recall was the result of a routine sampling program by American
Laboratories Inc., of Omaha, Nebraska, which detected Salmonella in the raw
material, pepsin, that was used in Solgar's dietary supplement. FDA's
investigation of the situation continues.
Consumers who purchased this product are urged to not consume it and should
instead destroy it or return it to the place of purchase for a full refund.
Consumers with questions may contact the company at 201/944-2311.
The FDA posts press releases and other notices of recalls from the firms involved as a service to consumers, the media, and other interested parties. The FDA does not endorse either the product or the company.
The text in this article was prepared by the FDA Office of Public Affairs.