Autentico Foods, a Hawaiian Gardens, Calif., establishment, is recalling approximately 54,000 pounds of ready-to-eat pork products that it did not produce in accordance with its food safety plan, failing to take the steps it had determined were necessary to produce safe products, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service announced.

The problem was discovered through a review of company records by FSIS in-plant inspection personnel. The review uncovered evidence to show that the establishment’s food safety records cannot be relied upon to document compliance with its Listeria prerequisite program. Therefore, FSIS must consider the products to be adulterated and has acted to remove the products from commerce. FSIS has received no reports of illnesses associated with consumption of these products. Individuals concerned about an illness should contact a physician.

The products subject to recall include a variety of fried pork skin and pork belly products under the Autentico Foods brand name. Affected packages bear lot numbers “09410X” through “23810X,” where “X” may be replaced with a numeral 1 through 5, printed on each container. They were distributed to retail establishments in California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, Texas, and Utah.

Source: FSIS

CEO of leading Mexican poultry processor retires

Industrias Bachoco S.A.B. de C.V., Mexico's leading producer and processor of poultry products, announced the retirement of its chief executive officer, Cristobal Mondragon Fragoso. Mondragon, 65, joined Bachoco in 1982, and he has held the CEO responsibility since 2001.

Javier R. Bours, chairman of the board, stated, "We would like to thank Mr. Mondragon for his work and dedication to the company during nearly thirty years. Under his leadership, the company continued to grow and constantly improve. He leaves a solid company ready to face future challenges. In addition, we are also pleased to announce that Mr. Mondragon will be nominated as a member of the Board of Directors of Industrias Bachoco."

The company named Rodolfo Ramos Arvizu as its new CEO, replacing Mondragon. Ramos, 53, joined the company in 1980, and since 1992 has held the position of technical managing director. He also has held the positions of production managing director, manager of raw material purchasing and supervisor of the commercial egg quality control program.

Ramos holds a degree in Agricultural Engineering from the Instituto Tecnologico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey and diplomas in Business Administration from the IPADE, Mexico.

Source: Industrias Bachoco S.A.B. de C.V.

Registration open for 2011 AMI show

Registration is now open for attendees and exhibitors of AMI International Meat, Poultry and Seafood Industry Convention and Exposition, to be held April 13-16, 2011, at McCormick Place in Chicago, Ill.

The official website of the AMI International Meat, Poultry and Seafood Industry Convention and Exposition, www.amiexpo.com, includes registration, hotel and travel information, detailed conference information and exhibitor lists. It also has resources for suppliers including information on how to exhibit and how to make the most of your experience at the show.

The cost for attendee registration is $125 and increases $50 after the March 2, 2011, pre-registration deadline.

The AMI Expo attracts approximately 400 exhibitors, who display the newest technologies in equipment, packaging, ingredients and services for processors of meat, poultry and seafood. Food industry professionals attend the AMI Expo to find solutions spanning the entire manufacturing process — from receiving and blending to processing and packaging to material handling and distribution. Attendees have the opportunity to view exhibits offering everything that meat, poultry, and seafood processing and packaging companies need to run more efficiently, create new products and improve profitability.

Source: AMI

Unger Meats opens facility in Minnesota

Unger Meat Co. has opened a new facility in Vadnais Heights, Minn., adding 30 jobs with plans to add 20 more. The company held a grand opening celebration last week, reports the Vadnais Heights Press, and donated its first pallet of frozen ground beef to Second Harvest Heartland.

Unger Meat Co. was co-founded by Joe Unger and Jim Ratcliff, owner of Ratcliff Ranch in Oklahoma. It offers beef products that can be traced back to ranch of origin. According to a press release, the beef is produced in the United States and is sold fresh and frozen to food service distributors in five states and retailers in two states. Each product is coded and the purchaser can enter the code at the company’s website to learn about the ranch raising the beef.

The company is planning on adding a second shift by next spring, which will require an additional 20 employees. It plans to be producing 2 million pounds of beef per month by late 2011.

Source: Vadnais Heights Press

Bill the Butcher names director of operations

Bill the Butcher Inc., a Seattle-based retailer that sells organic and natural grass-fed meats, has promoted Ross Arrington from head butcher and buyer to director of operations.

“I am very pleased to be part of such a dynamic company, one that is trying to make a real difference by bringing grass-fed meat to consumers while supporting small farmers and ranchers,” said Arrington.

“Ross knows the meat industry inside out, having actually been a hands-on butcher and operating at the other end of the industry as director of meat purchasing for very large grocery chains,” said J’Amy Owens, chief executive officer. “Bill the Butcher is creating a marketplace in the strata between the farmers market and below the grocery store where none existed before, and Ross’ experience is very valuable to our efforts.”

Arrington began his career as an apprentice meat cutter for Safeway Inc. and was quickly promoted to journeyman, later meat manager, and then division meat buyer for the company’s 180 stores. He later served as director of meat distribution for Associated Grocer. At AG, Arrington managed sales, purchasing, distribution and ad development for 29 independent retail groups, representing more than 300 stores.

Prior to joining Bill the Butcher, Arrington was meat team leader of the meat department at Redmond’s Whole Foods. There, he managed a staff of 8, and managed the purchasing, merchandising and sales for the department, where the volume of sales averaged more than $2 million annually.

During the past 12 months, Bill the Butcher Inc. made the successful transition from a company with no revenues to a 6-store chain of neighborhood butcher shops selling organic and natural grass-fed meat. The company was founded in 2009 by national retailing expert J’Amy Owens and executive chef William von Schneidau.

Source: Bill the Butcher Inc.