After food inspection, Springfield grocery store pulls expired cans of toddler formula

A Springfield-Greene County Health Department inspector found five cans of toddler formula on a grocery store shelf that expired last Halloween, according to a May 22 food inspection report.

Five cans of toddler formula that expired on October 31, 2022, were found on the shelves of Price Cutter No. 34, 1831 W. Kearney St., Springfield, on May 22, according to the food inspection report. Identified as a priority violation, the store manager resolved the issue by removing the cans from the floor.

According to the Food and Drug Administration, toddler formula or toddler nutritive drinks do not undergo the same time of review that infant formula does. The FDA has specific labeling requirements for infant formula, including a use-by date, "which is the date up to which the manufacturer guarantees the nutrient content and the quality of the formula." While infant formula can be used as a complete or partial substitute for breast milk, toddler formula alone will not meet the nutritional needs of young children, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Food inspections take place one to three times a year, depending on the type of food served, the population served, difficulty of food preparation and past history. Restaurants preparing food from raw ingredients are inspected more often "than convenience stores that serve only non-potentially hazardous foods, such as popcorn and soda," according to the Springfield-Greene County Health Department.

Each report identifies what was happening at the establishment at that time. Consumers who want to know whether a violation is a one-time thing or a pattern are encouraged to refer to previous reports.

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Issues found during inspection fall into either priority or non-priority violations. Priority violations impact the safety of the food, such as cross contamination between raw and ready-to-eat food, improper food temperature and poor personal hygiene and employee health. Multiple priority violations can lead to an establishment being shut down. Non-priority violations alone do not directly affect food safety, such as dirty floors, sticky tabletops or outside trash cans not being covered.

Here are food inspections from the last week:

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Amazin Buffet, 2501 S. Campbell Ave., Springfield. May 18 re-inspection – Result: active. All previous cold-holding violations corrected. No re-inspection required. No violations noted.

Baymont Inn & Suites, 1610 E. Evergreen St., Springfield. May 24 routine inspection – Result: permitted with re-inspection. Two priority violations: Observed potentially hazardous food in the self-service cooler not being held at or below 41 degrees Fahrenheit (cream cheese held at 44 to 46 degrees), which was voluntarily discarded; observed individual butter packets being stored on the counter at room temperature (66 degrees), which were voluntarily discarded. No non-priority violations.

Big Whiskey's American Bar & Grill, 311 Park Central East, Springfield. May 22 routine inspection – Result: permitted with re-inspection. Four priority violations: 1. Observed salad prep cooler on line holding potentially hazardous food items on top at 43 to 44 degrees. Chicken and batter were on melted ice bath at 62 degrees, and were placed on time control. Manager called maintenance for the prep cooler immediately. 2. Observed quat solution for wiping cloths on cook line used to sanitize raw chicken prep area at 100 parts per million quat. Manager refilled bucket with 200 to 300 parts per million quat. 3. Observed potentially hazardous food items such as mashed potatoes, au jus and cheese dips in steam table holding at 112 to 114 degrees. Corrected by turning steam table from low to high and by reheating food items to more than 165 degrees, as required. Check steam table with thin-probe thermometer at least every two hours. 4. Observed mashed potatoes in closed container in walk-in cooler at 81 to 90 degrees. Potatoes voluntarily discarded since it had been more than two hours. Education provided along with a cooling poster. One non-priority violation: Observed heavy build-up on surface of dish rack and rack holds. Manager agrees to order new dish and cup racks and will contact another store to borrow racks until new racks come in.

Boys & Girls Club - Henderson Unit, 835 W. Calhoun St., Springfield. May 18 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations noted.

Casey's General Store No. 2613, 410 S. Miller Road, Willard. May 19 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations cited.

Clearwater Cafe, 2500 E. Kearney St., Springfield. May 18 routine inspection – Result: active. One priority violation: Observed potentially hazardous food, cantaloupe-infused water, not being properly cold held at 41 degrees or below. Education given and corrected on site by staff discarding the item. One non-priority item: Observed missing ceiling tile in dishwasher room.

CoxHealth - North, 1423 N. Jefferson Ave., Springfield. May 25 routine inspection – Result: active. Need to replace glue traps more frequently. Two steamers were not operational, but parts were on order. The container for lemon and lime wedges should have a flip top cover or something similar. No violations cited at time of inspection.

Culver's, 1481 E. US Highway 60 East, Republic. May 18 routine inspection – Result: permitted with re-inspection. Discussed cleaning container used to store in-use tongs every four hours. Three priority violations: Observed foods held above 41 degrees, like mayonnaise at 50 degrees, lettuce at 46 degrees and tomatoes at 52 degrees, all of which were discarded; observed foods held at temperatures above 41 degrees including veggie burgers at 63 degrees, corned beef at 58 degrees and raw hamburger at 46 degrees, all of which were discarded; observed mushrooms held at 103 degrees, which were discarded. No non-priority violations.

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Diamondmart, 2744 E. Chestnut Expressway, Springfield. May 22 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations cited.

Druff's, 331 Park Central East, Springfield. May 18 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations.

Flat Creek Bar and Grill, 772 E. US Highway 60 East, Republic. May 19 re-inspection – Result: active. Restaurant will keep ice on fish or place it on time control. Unit is holding all other foods below 41 degrees. No violations noted.

Flying J Travel Plaza No. 1061, 4939 W. Chestnut Expressway, Springfield. May 24 re-inspection – Result: active. Unit was repaired and was running at proper temperature.

Glendale High School, 2727 S. Ingram Mill Road, Springfield. May 22 routine inspection – Result: Active. No violations noted at time of inspection.

Hog Tide Bar-B-Que - Willard, 304 E. Jackson St., Willard. May 24 re-inspection – Result: active. The refrigerator had been repaired and recharged. No violations cited.

I Love Tacos Taqueria, 2724 E. Chestnut Expressway, Springfield. May 22 routine inspection – Result: active. One priority violation: Observed various potentially hazardous foodstuffs not date marked appropriately, education was given and corrected by staff placing appropriate date marking on food. Two non-priority violations: Observed absence of a handwashing cleanser at handwashing sink, repeat violation; observed hand sink not accessible to employees and blocked by cleaning cart, education given and staff moved cart.

Jade East II, 2435 S. Campbell Ave., Springfield. May 18 routine inspection – Result: active. Two priority violations: Observed fried chicken was being stored in cardboard boxes inside walk-in cooler, so five cardboard boxes of fried chicken were voluntarily discarded and education was provided; observed multiple items such as cut cabbage, noodles, cooked potato wedges and chicken were not date marked, so education was provided and all were marked correctly. No non-priority violations.

Jarrett Middle School, 906 W. Portland St., Springfield. May 25 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations cited.

Kum & Go No. 563, 3015 W. Republic Road, Springfield. May 18 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations cited.

Lavender Bros., LLC, 5313 S. Farm Road 241, Rogersville. May 18 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations cited.

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McGregor School, 1221 W. Madison St., Springfield. May 18 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations cited.

Misaki 2, 2710 S. Campbell Ave., Springfield. May 22 routine inspection – Result: active. One priority violation: Observed employee rinse hands in three-compartment sink after contamination with raw meat. Observed person in charge rinse hands in handwashing sink before putting on gloves to make sushi order. No soap used in either occurrence. Education provided on proper handwashing. Corrected on-site by having both employees remove gloves, wash hands, then put on clean gloves before returning to work. No non-priority violations.

New Oriental Restaurant, 550 E. Chestnut Expressway, Springfield. May 23 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations noted at time of inspection. Discussed cooling procedure for noodles and education given.

Pasta Express, 321 E. Battlefield Road, Springfield. May 23 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations noted at time of inspection.

Pizza Hut, 806 E. US Highway 60 East, Republic. May 19 re-inspection – Result: active. Priority items corrected and all foods held at proper temperature. No violations cited.

Price Cutter No. 34 Meat Dept., 1831 W. Kearney St., Springfield. May 22 routine inspection – Result: active. No priority violations. Three non-priority violations: Observed hand sink in meat department was out of hand soap; observed three-vat sink and lower portions of some stainless steel tables were not clean; observed the fan covers in meat room were coated with dust and debris.

Price Cutter No. 34 Produce, 1831 W. Kearney St., Springfield. May 22 routine inspection – Result: active. No priority violations. Two non-priority violations: Observed at least three ceiling tiles in produce prep room with water damage; observed cobwebs in produce prep area above hand sink.

Price Cutter No. 34 Retail/Bakery, 1831 W. Kearney St., Springfield. May 22 routine inspection – Result: active. Outdated toddler formula voluntarily removed from customer service by manager. Inspector also discussed proper hair restraint for staff working with open food or clean utensils. One priority violation: Observed five cans of toddler formula with expiration dates of Oct. 31, 2022. These were voluntarily removed from customer service by manager. One non-priority violation: Observed areas of floor in bakery and proofer, as well as walls and ceiling in back storage area, that were not clean.

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Price Cutter Plus No. 51 Smokehouse, 4228 S. National Ave., Springfield. May 23 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations cited at time of inspection.

Prime - Campus Cafe, 2610 N. Glenstone Ave., Springfield. May 18 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations cited during inspection.

Republic Eagle Stop, 2804 N. Brookline Ave., Republic. May 23 routine inspection – Result: permitted with re-inspection. Discussed storage requirements for chemicals and proper storage of single-service cups to keep cup rims protected from contamination. One priority violation: Observed open packages of ready-to-eat foods not marked with discard date. One non-priority violation: Observed boxes of single-service cups stored on floor of back room.

SPGLF Catholic High School, 2340 S. Eastgate Ave., Springfield. May 29 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations noted at time of inspection.

Three D Coffee doing business as Seattle Roast, 401 S. South Ave., Springfield. May 24 routine inspection – Result: active. No violations cited.

Walmart Neighborhood Market No. 3062 Retail/Bakery, 3536 W. Mount Vernon St., Springfield. May 19 re-inspection – Result: active. No violations cited.

Susan Szuch is the health and public policy reporter for the Springfield News-Leader. Follow her on Twitter @szuchsm. Story idea? Email her at sszuch@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Springfield supermarket pulls expired toddler formula from shelves