 |
|
|
|||||
Wholesale Produce Supply, a food supplier based in Minneapolis, has recalled more than two dozen varieties of its fresh cut and processed cantaloupe products due to a risk of contamination with Listeria monocytogenes, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced. According to a notice posted by the FDA on Monday, September 29, no illnesses have been reported to date, but Listeria has the potential to cause serious infections. Here’s what to know: Which products are affected by the recall? Wholesale Produce Supply fresh cut cantaloupe was sold to distributors in Nebraska, North Dakota, and Wisconsin, who may have distributed the product to other states. The impacted products were sold under two brands: Harvest Cuts and Fresh and Finest. They were distributed to “traditional grocery locations.” The recall notice does not name specific retailers. Fast Company reached out to Wholesale Produce Supply for additional details and will update this story if we hear back. Affected products were packed in traditional plastic clamshell containers. Some packages included only cantaloupe, while others featured cantaloupe mixed with other fresh-cut fruits. The potential Listeria contamination was discovered during routine testing performed by the company, according to the FDA. Wholesale Produce Supply has suspended production and distribution of the affected lot and is investigating the cause of the problem. The company has recalled the following retail products. You can find the full product descriptions, UPC codes, and lot numbers on the FDA website. Cantaloupe and Honeydew (12-ounce) Cantaloupe Chunks (8-ounce) Cantaloupe Chunks (16-ounce) Cantaloupe Chunks (6-ounce) Cantaloupe Chunks F&F (12-ounce) Cantaloupe Chunks (5-pound) Cantaloupe Spears (16-ounce) Fruit Medley (8-ounce) Fruit Medley F&F (12-ounce) Fruit Mix (16-ounce) Fruit Mix (6-ounce) Fruit Mix CHWG (MCT) (5-pound) Fruit Salad (16-ounce) Fruit Salad (6-ounce) Fruit Tray CHPG w/ Dip HC RND (2-pound) Fruit Tray w/ Strawberries HC (2-pound) Fruit Tray w/ Watermelons HC (2.5-pound) Fruit Tray w/ Watermelons HC (2.5-pound) Luau Blend Fruit Mix F&F (10-ounce) Melon Mix (16-ounce) Melon Mix (6-ounce) Melon Mix Bowl (48-ounce) Melon Mix Bowl & Grapes (48-ounce) Melon Mix CHW (MCT) (5-pound) Melon Mix Spears (16-ounce) Consumers should not eat the recalled product Customers who have purchased affected Harvest Cuts or Fresh and Finest products should not consume them. Rather, return the product to the place of purchase for a full refund. If you have any questions, contact Wholesale Produce Supply by calling (612) 378-2025. Some people are more at risk of Listeria infection Consuming foods contaminated with Listeria can lead to infection, which can be potentially serious and even fatal. According to the Mayo Clinic, healthy people rarely become very ill from Listeria infection. However, pregnant women, adults 65 and older, and people with weakened immune systems are more at risk for infection. As reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Listeria infection is “the third leading cause of death from food borne illness in the United States.”
Category:
E-Commerce
Charlie Javice, the founder of a startup company that promised to revolutionize the way college students apply for financial aid, was sentenced Monday to more than seven years in prison for cheating JPMorgan Chase out of $175 million by greatly exaggerating how many students it served.Javice, 33, was convicted in March of duping the banking giant when it bought her company, called Frank, in the summer of 2021. She made false records that made it seem like Frank had over 4 million customers when it had fewer than 300,000.Addressing the court before she was sentenced, Javice, who was in her mid-20s when she founded the company, said she was “haunted that my failure has transformed something meaningful into something infamous.”Sometimes speaking through tears, she said she “made a choice that I will spend my entire life regretting.”Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein largely dismissed arguments by Javice’s lawyer, Ronald Sullivan, that he should be lenient because the negotiations that led to Frank’s sale pitted “a 28-year-old versus 300 investment bankers from the largest bank in the world.”Still, the judge criticized the bank, saying “they have a lot to blame themselves” after failing to do adequate due diligence. He quickly added, though, that he was “punishing her conduct and not JPMorgan’s stupidity.”Javice was among a number of young tech executives who vaulted to fame with supposedly disruptive or transformative companies, only to see them collapse amid questions about whether they had engaged in puffery and fraud while dealing with investors.Her prosecution drew comparisons to the case against Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of a blood testing company, Theranos, that collapsed amid fraud allegations.Javice, who lives in Florida, has been free on $2 million bail since her 2023 arrest. The judge said she could remain free while she appeals the verdict. She was convicted of conspiracy, bank fraud and wire fraud charges. Her lawyers had argued that JPMorgan went after Javice because it had buyer’s remorse.A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business, Javice founded Frank to launch software that promised to simplify the arduous process of filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, a complex government form used by students to apply for aid for college or graduate school.Frank’s backers included venture capitalist Michael Eisenberg. The company said its offering, akin to online tax preparation software, could help students maximize financial aid while making the application process less painful.The company promoted itself as a way for financially needy students to obtain more aid faster, in return for a few hundred dollars in fees. Javice appeared regularly on cable news programs to boost Frank’s profile, once appearing on Forbes’ “30 Under 30” list before JPMorgan bought the startup in 2021.Sullivan told Hellerstein that his client was very different from Holmes because what she created actually worked, unlike Holmes, “who did not have a real company” and whose product “in fact endangered patients.” Sullivan said the bank rushed its negotiations because it feared another bank would acquire Frank first.A prosecutor, Micah Fergenson, though, said JPMorgan “didn’t get a functioning business” in exchange for its investment. “They acquired a crime scene.”Fergenson said Javice was driven by greed when she saw that she could pocket $29 million from the sale of her company.“Ms. Javice had it dangling in front of her and she lied to get it,” he said.And in seeking a long prison sentence for Javice, prosecutors cited a 2022 text she had sent to a colleague in which she called it “ridiculous” that Holmes got over 11 years in prison in the Theranos case.Prosecutors added that the message was “desperately needed” because of “an alarming trend of founders and executives of small startup companies engaging in fraud, including making misrepresentations about their companies’ core products or services, in order to make their companies attractive targets for investors and/or buyers.” Larry Neumeister, Associated Press
Category:
E-Commerce
Shares of Spotify Technology SA were put on the spot this morning as the Swedish audio-streaming company announced that CEO Daniel Ek will be transitioning out of the role at the end of the year. He will be replaced by two new co-CEOs: Gustav Söderström, Spotifys current copresident and chief product and technology officer, and Alex Norström, copresident and chief business officer. Ek will remain with the company and oversee its long-term strategy and capital allocation, and provide guidance in his new role as chairman of the board. Kicking and streaming Investors may take some time to absorb the news. Spotify stock, listed in the U.S. and trading on the New York Stock Exchange, was down nearly 4% as of 8:30 a.m. during premarket trading. However, shares are up almost 6% over the past month and a whopping 60% year-to-date as Spotify has reported consistent user growth and its first full profitable year in 2024. I always believed that Spotify could play an important role in revolutionizing listening around the world, and with more than 700 million users, weve truly charted a new course bringing creativity to every corner of the globe, Ek said in a company statement. The CEO also announced his departure on Instagram. The 42-year-old Ek cofounded Spotify in 2008 and has been with the company ever since, seeing it grow from a small Swedish startup to become the top music streaming platform in the world, with almost 700 million users worldwide along with 276 million subscribers in 180 markets. More recently, the company has leaned into the burgeoning audiobook segment, rolled out new features like Mix mode, and more. ‘Can’t wait to get started’ With a lot of momentum, Spotifys new CEOs said in a joint statement that theyre confident theyll take the company forward. Weve worked together a very long time and have seen Spotify through many different chapters,” Söderström and Norström said. “Nearly three years ago, when we stepped into our role as co-Presidents, we charged our teams with relentlessly focusing on building the best and most valuable experience available anywhere and that ambition hasnt changed.”
Category:
E-Commerce
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||