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How to prevent food labeling mixups

The top source of food recalls can be prevented in the plant with proper attention to mislabeling and mixed labeling.

The No. 1 cause for North American food recalls in 2011 wasn't a foodborne illness, it was unlabeled or mislabeled ingredients. But the problem is just as serious, because in the United States, approximately roughly 2% of U.S. adults and 5% of U.S. children have at least one food allergy, and reactions to an undeclared allergen can be fatal.
 
Cartons, bags, labels and misprints are subject to human error, but such instances of mixed labeling or mislabeling (considered "misbranding" by regulators) can be hard to spot. Not only do they look alike, but today’s high- speed packaging lines "make it difficult to see accidental package changes during a run," Debra Krug-Reyes, food safety and quality auditing principal at ConAgra Foods, Naperville, IL, said to conference attendees at the 2012 Pack Expo in Chicago.
 
She and others on a panel discussion cited examples of recalls such as veggie burger cartons were accidentally switched, and where a nutrition panel from the wrong product was applied to tartar sauce packages.
 
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