But, he said, the findings "indicate there is certainly a salmonella problem in the plant, even though they're not associated with the outbreak."
Peanut Corp. of America shipped its goods to companies that used them in products such as cakes, cookies, energy bars and dog biscuits, federal officials said. Its peanut butter went to institutions such as nursing homes.
The fact that salmonella was found in closed containers of Peanut Corp. of America products was "clear proof that the organism was in the plant," Sundlof said. But he could not say whether the specific salmonella that had made people sick was found in the plant.
Government officials have visited about 1,000 companies that bought products from Peanut Corp of America. The list of items that firms voluntarily recalled continues to grow.
The American Peanut Council, an industry group, said "the vast majority of peanut products and foods containing peanut products" were not affected and it was compiling a list of those products. No major brand of jarred peanut butter has been implicated in the outbreak.
The plant has been closed during the investigation. The company laid off most of the roughly 50 workers at the facility in Blakely, which calls itself the "Peanut Capital of the World."
Peanut Corp. of America, a family-owned business based in Lynchburg, Va., sells peanut butter in containers ranging from five to 1,700 pounds, the FDA said. Its paste is sold in sizes from 35 pounds to tankers.
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mary.macvean@latimes.com
