Peanut Alert - 17 February 2020

Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia have been asked to share the following message from ALDI:

As you may be aware ALDI Stores conducted a precautionary recall of ALDI Remano Basil Pesto and Remano Sundried Tomato Pesto products due to the potential of undeclared Peanut protein being present in the product.

This was due to a broader industry issue affecting some products manufactured in Italy or using raw materials sourced by Italy from another country which resulted in a number of Australian product recalls.

ALDI has worked closely with the NSW Food Authority, Food Standards Australia New Zealand and Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia (A&AA), and agreement has been reached for ALDI to relabel existing stock of these two Pesto products with correct allergen information. In consultation with regulators ALDI has also amended the product recall so that it applies only those jars of these products which do not state ‘may contain peanuts’ on either the lid or in the product label allergen listing.

The amended recall notice for these products is available here: ALDI Remano Basil and Sun-Dried Tomato Pestos

A FSANZ statement on this Cashew contamination incident is available here: Undeclared peanut in pesto and associated products containing cashews

ALDI strongly advises consumers to read and understand allergen warning labels. In this particular instance, ALDI wants to draw our consumers’ attention to the fact that existing stock of Remano Basil Pesto and Remano Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto will be sold in ALDI Stores with a-sticker applied to the lid of the product stating that the products ‘may contain peanuts’. To avoid any risk of reaction, consumers with a peanut allergy or intolerance, or who are allergic to any of the other allergens listed on the product label, should not consume this product. This is because a ‘may contain’ statement means that the level of allergens in the product can vary between batches. That is, some of these products will contain allergens while others will not. So, in this case there is real risk that peanut allergens will be present in some but not all batches of the Remano Basil Pesto and Remano Sundried Tomato Pesto products.

ALDI is also currently changing the product label so that in future ‘may contain peanuts’ is included in the allergen advisory statement.