Company News: ConAgra identifies cause of salmonella

ConAgra Foods said Thursday that moisture from a leaky roof and faulty sprinkler was the source of the salmonella bacteria that contaminated peanut butter at its Georgia plant last year, sickening more than 400 people nationwide.

The Omaha-based company conducted a nearly two-month investigation into the contamination and pledged to ensure that Peter Pan peanut butter is safe when it returns to stores in mid-July.

ConAgra recalled all its peanut butter in February after federal health officials linked it to cases of salmonella infection. At least 425 people in 44 states were sickened, and numerous lawsuits have been filed against the company.

ConAgra spokeswoman Stephanie Childs said the company traced the salmonella outbreak to three problems at its Sylvester, Ga., plant last August. The plant’s roof leaked during a rainstorm, and the sprinkler system went off twice because of a faulty sprinkler, which was repaired.

The moisture from those three events mixed with dormant salmonella bacteria in the plant that Childs said likely came from raw peanuts and peanut dust. She said the plant was cleaned thoroughly after the roof leak and sprinkler problem, but the salmonella remained and somehow came in contact with peanut butter before it was packaged.

“Constellation Brands Inc., the world’s largest wine maker, said Thursday its fourth-quarter profit grew 26 percent, as strong wine sales helped offset heightened competition in Britain and a drop in sales of imported beer.

Earnings beat Wall Street expectations and the stock rose 67 cents, or 3.2 percent, to close at $21.49 on the New York Stock Exchange. Overall sales grew 9 percent to $1.42 billion from $1.3 billion a year ago, and sales after excise taxes were $1.14 billion.

The company’s 200-plus brands run from jug wines to coveted California reds such as Ravenswood and Estancia, beer imports such as Corona and St. Pauli Girl and liquors like Fleischmann’s vodka, Skol gin and Black Velvet Canadian whiskey.

“Northwest Airlines Corp. said Thursday that its new regional subsidiary Compass Airlines has won Federal Aviation Administration certification.

Northwest said Compass will begin passenger flights using one 50-seat regional jet in May between Washington and Minneapolis. Northwest expects Compass to add 10 new 76-seat Embraer 175 aircraft this year. The Compass fleet will include 36 aircraft by the end of 2008.