Product Recalls on Items with Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein (HVP).

The FDA has announced that HVP manufactured by Basic Food Flavors has been recalled, which estimates that 10,000 products will also be affected by this recall. Hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP) is a flavor enhancer commonly used in processed foods.

HVP is found in snack foods such as potato chips and pretzels. It's also used in dry mixes for chip dips, gravy, au jus and marinades. HVP is also used in frozen foods (such as taquitos and quesadillas) and in fresh foods such as potato salad and fresh dips found from local grocery stores.

The recall was issued due to possible salmonella contamination. Salmonella is one of the most common causes of food borne illness in the United States. This may cause fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain.

Products that may be affected due to the recall include:
El Pasado Shredded Beef Mini and Beef Taquitos & Grilled Chicken Quesadillas
Follow Your Heart Ready to Eat Meals
Great Nut Supply Honey Mustard Pretzels & Bar Mix
HK Anderson Honey Mustard Pretzel Bites
Tim's Cascade Hawaiian style snacks
Herr's Sea Salt Flavored Kettle Style Potato Chips
National Pretzel Company (various) 
Trader Joe's Organic Creamy Ranch Dressing & Dip
McCormick Onion Gravy mix

Please check out the online article for more information on what products are included in the recall. http://specials.msn.com/A-List/HPV-Products-Recall.aspx?cp-documentid=23633953&imageindex=1

For more information please call 1-877 MESSALAW

Trial Opens in Toddler Heat Death

Jury selection is began Tuesday for the death of a toddler left in a hot minivan for hours outside a suburban Philadelphia day care center last summer.

Forty-seven-year-old Rimma Shvartsman is charged with involuntary manslaughter, child endangerment, and leaving a child unattended in a vehicle. Authorities say she left 2-year-old Daniel Slutsky outside her Fairy Tales Daycare Center in Penndel, Bucks County, on July 1.

Prosecutors say that although Shvartsman did not intentionally leave Daniel behind, her actions were criminally negligent. Officials say that the 29-pound toddler's body temperature was 108 degrees when he was found.

Shvartsman's lawyer has said she forgot the child due to stress, lack of sleep, and concern about a medical problem.

The boy's parents have filed a lawsuit against the day care center.

For more information, please call 1-877 MESSALAW

Government Recalling Over 1 Million High Chairs

1.2 million of Graco highchairs are being recalled due to a fall hazard. Consumers should immediately stop using the Harmony™ high chair. 

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has received 24 reports of children falling when the legs to the chair have become dislodged or broken.

Models affected:


3920BAN, 3920BAN2, 3920BEB, 3920BEBB, 3920COV, 3920DOH, 3920GEI, 3920GEIDSP, 3920GRN, 3920HMP, 3920IVY, 3920LAU, 3920PKR, 3930DDH, 3930DHO, 3935CAL, 3935OXB, 3935PKR, 3935PKRDSP, 3935SPM, 3935SPMDSP, 3935THR, 3935THR2, 3935THR3, 3940BIA, 3940BIADSP, 3940CAP, 3940CLE, 3940COT, 3940DRM, 3940HML, 3940MCH, 3940NGS, 3940SAV, 3940SLT, 3940SPT, 3940STA, 3940UNN, 3951CLO, 3951CLT, 3951COT, 3951ORC, 3951WLO, 3955WSR, 3960BGN, 3960CJG, 3960CNP, 3960GGG, 3980CNR, 3E00ABB, 3E00BAT, 3E00DCF, 3E00DCFDSP, 3E00DGP, 3E00DGPDSP, 3E00GPK, 3E01BDS, 3E01BDSCA, 3E01DNY, 3E01DNY1, 3E01ELP, 3E01ELPDSP, 1752404, 1755859, 1755860, 1757259, 1757412, 1760429


For more information, please call 1 877 MESSALAW or go to www.gracobaby.com for a repair kit from Graco if you own a Graco "Harmony" high chair. 

Boston Scientific Recalls Seven Brands of Implantable Defibrillators

Boston Scientific is issuing a massive recall of its implantable heart defibrillators. According to a Boston Scientific press release, the company is halting sales and retrieving field inventory of all its implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) and cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators (CRT-Ds) because it did not get approval from federal regulators for changes to its manufacturing processes.


All of the devices in the recall were acquired by Boston Scientific in 2006 when it purchased medical device manufacturer Guidant Corp., of St. Paul, Minn., for $28.4 billion. The recall impacts seven brands of Boston Scientific defibrillators: COGNIS®, CONFIENT™, LIVIAN™, PRIZM™, RENEWAL®, TELIGEN® and VITALITY™. The Company’s pacemakers and other products are not affected by the is action.


The recall is expected to take a heavy toll on the company’s bottom line. According to The Wall Street Journal, Boston Scientific will lose about $5 million in sales each day it can’t sell the devices.


This is not the first time Boston Scientific’s Guidant acquisition has proved troublesome for the device maker. In November, the company agreed to plead guilty and pay $296 million to resolve federal charges that failed to fully disclose earlier problems with its implantable defibrillators to the FDA.


For more information, please contact 1877 MESSALAW.

CPSC to issue safety warning about popular baby slings

Baby slings is being targeted by the US Consumer Product Commission for a warning that they can be dangerous to infants.

The CPSC has issued at least four recalls of the slings for falling apart, including one that followed eight infants falling out - four of whom ended up in the ER. However its not the risk of falling out, its the risk of suffocation that has provoked this warning.

More than 40 sling-related injuries are suspected over the past decade- including seven deaths.

For more information, please contact 1 877 MESSALAW.

Runaway Toyota Prius - man's worst nightmare

The driver of a Toyota Prius says he was taken on a wild ride Monday after the car's accelerator became stuck, reaching speeds in excess of 90 mph on a winding, hilly portion of a southern California interstate.

"I pushed the gas pedal to pass a car, and it just did something kind of funny ... and it just stuck there," he said at a news conference outside a Highway Patrol office. "As I was going, I was trying the brakes ... and it just kept speeding up.

Sikes said he called 911 for help, and dispatchers talked him through instructions on how he might be able to stop the car. But nothing worked.

Alerted by emergency dispatchers, a California Highway Patrol officer was able to catch up to Sikes' Prius and used the patrol car's public address system to instruct Sikes to apply the brakes and the emergency brake at the same time.

The tactic worked, and the car slowed to about 50 mph. Sikes said he was able to shut off the car, and it rolled to a stop. The responding officer, Todd Neibert, positioned his patrol car in front of the Prius as a precaution to prevent it from moving again.

Toyota recently issued widespread recalls due to problems related to the accelerator pedal in several of its auto models. One theory behind the sticky accelerators is the vehicles' floor mats.

But Sikes said "my mat was perfect. There was nothing wrong with my mat."

Sikes said he took his 2008 Prius into a local Toyota dealership about two weeks ago for service and gave workers there his recall notice. He said he was told his car wasn't on the recall list.

"I'll be back there tomorrow," he said Monday, visibly shaken up.

CHP spokesman Brian Pennings said the ordeal lasted just over 20 minutes.

Check out the link below. For more information please contact 1877 MESSALAW

Runaway Prius

GM to Recall 1.3 Million Compacts for Steering Problem

General Motors Co. is recalling 1.3 million Chevrolet and Pontiac compact cars sold in the U.S., Canada and Mexico to fix power steering motors that can fail.
The recall affects 2005 to 2010 Chevrolet Cobalts, 2007 to 2010 Pontiac G5s, 2005 and 2006 Pontiac Pursuits sold in Canada and 2005 and 2006 Pontiac G4s sold in Mexico.

The problem with the vehicles is that the steering of the vehicles may be harder when traveling under 15 mph, but the vehicles are safe to travel in all other circumstances.

GM told the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration about the recall on Monday. NHTSA began an investigation into 905,000 of the models on Jan. 27 after getting 1,100 complaints that the cars lost their power steering assist. The complaints included 14 crashes and one injury.

The automaker will fix older models first because it usually takes 20,000 to 30,000 miles of driving for the condition to develop. Consumers should also note that if the power steering assist fails, it usually comes back for a time after the car is shut off and restarted.

For more information, please call 1-877 MESSALAW

What Should You do if a Vehicle is Accelerating Uncontrollably?

Accelerator pedals in the 2.3 million vehicles that Toyota recalled may, in rare circumstances, become stuck after the pedal mechanisms become worn, the automaker has said.

Toyota says it is shipping reinforcement parts to dealers, and that dealers will start repairs as soon as this weekend. The U.S. Transportation Department urges owners of the recalled vehicles to arrange fixes as soon as possible, though Toyota says the sticking problem is rare and happens gradually, and if no sticking is noticed in a vehicle, it should be safe to drive.

If the pedal starts to feel sticky but isn't yet stuck, stop driving and call a dealer to arrange for your vehicle to be picked up, Toyota says. But if the pedal is stuck in a depressed position, here is what the driver can do
• Shift the transmission to neutral
• Turn off the ignition switch
• Apply the brakes and pull over

Some 2009 and 2010 vehicles involved in the recall have buttons for the ignition, rather than keys. If this is the case, to cut power to the engine, push the button and hold it for more than three seconds.

Vehicles in the recall are: Toyota's 2009-2010 RAV4, Corolla and Matrix; 2005-2010 Avalon; certain 2007-2010 Camrys; 2010 Highlander; 2007-2010 Tundra; and the 2008-2010 Sequoia. The Camry Hybrid is not included.

For more information, please call 1-877 MESSALAW

Children Toy Recalls Occur During the Month of February

Thousands of recalls on children's toys, greeting cards, lamps, cribs and strollers have been issued for the month of February. Potential risks range from choking hazards to fingertip amputation. Click on individual links for updated recall information.

Children toys sold at gift and specialty stores nationwide include the following: “Pull-A-Long" toys such as the Pull-A-Long Friends Toucan, Pull-A-Long Friends Alligator, and the Pull-A-Long Friends Sharky.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has recalled 600,000 wind chime toys in the United States because the toys can pull apart, expose metal rods and cause punctures or cuts to babies. These wind chime toys are sold at Toys R Us, Wal-Mart, Target, and TJ Max.

Toy guns sold at Dollar General specifically the Special Forces and Police SWAT Toy Gun Sets have been put on recall. The orange tips located at the end of the toy guns barrels, which are designed to distinguish them from real guns, can easily be removed from the barrels, which can cause a choking hazard to children.

Children’s toy jewelry sets sold at retailers nationwide have been placed on recall specifically the Tiny Tink and Friends Childrens Toy Jewelry Sets. The cylindrical metal connector on a charm can contain levels of total lead in excess of 300 ppm, which is prohibited under federal law.

Children’s necklaces, Children's Metal Necklaces, sold exclusively at Wal-Mart stores are recalled due to the necklaces contain high levels of cadmium. Cadmium is toxic if ingested by young children and can cause adverse health effects.

Knight Hawk toy helicopters sold at RadioShack stores nationwide has a housing under the helicopter canopy which can overheat while charging, posing a fire hazard.

For more information, please call 1-877 MESSALAW