Publix, Fresh & Easy Pull Pecan Pie

JULIE GALLAGHER

LAKELAND, Fla. — Mislabeled store-brand pies were pulled from Publix Super Markets and Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market stores during the holiday rush.

Coincidentally, both Publix's Pumpkin Pecan Streusel Pie and Fresh & Easy's Pumpkin Cheesecake Pies contained undeclared pecans.

Publix's label correctly identified its pie as Pumpkin Pecan Streusel, but its ingredient statement failed to declare pecans. Under the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act, manufacturers are required to declare tree nuts like pecans and seven other allergens on their ingredient lists.

SN couldn't reach a Publix spokesperson for comment.

Human error led an unspecified number of Fresh & Easy's Pumpkin Cheesecake Pies with pecan crumb topping to receive labels intended for private-label pumpkin pies without pecans.

“We have safeguards in place to ensure items, especially those with allergens, are properly labeled,” spokesman Brendan Wonnacott, told SN. “But in our kitchen where we create Fresh & Easy items, mistakes happen from time to time.”

Similar slip-ups are not uncommon. Improper labeling of products containing allergens is the leading cause of food recalls in the U.S., according the Grocery Manufacturers Association's newly updated “Managing Allergens in Food Processing Establishments” manual. It contains best practices for managing labels.