Pistachio Co.: Kraft Knew About Salmonella Last Year

Kraft Foods detected salmonella in a California nut company's product over 6 months ago but didn't notify the firm until last week, a rep for the parent company said today. Roasted nuts from Setton Pistachio of Terra Bella, Inc., the company at the heart of the nationwide pistachio recall, failed a Kraft salmonella test in September 2008, the AP reports.

Setton Pistachio recalled more than 2 million pounds of the nuts Monday after a Kraft manufacturer found salmonella in another batch of roasted pistachios on March 20. An FDA food safety official says he thinks Kraft destroyed or recalled the tainted trail mix. (More salmonella stories.)