Peanut Butter Recall FAQ

1. PEANUT BUTTER RECALL UPDATE
As you know this is currently a big peanut butter issue in South Africa. As soon as we became aware of it, we immediately tested our own peanut butter and discovered that batches manufactured between May and December 2023 of our Original and Dark Roast Peanut Butter contained aflatoxin levels above the safety limits set by South African health regulations.

These peanuts were tested specifically for Aflatoxin during harvest and all Aflatoxin levels were compliant, so this discovery points to a rare occurrence where the contract manufacturer we use had issues whilst transporting the peanuts from farms in Malawi to SA and the peanuts were exposed to excess moisture.



2. WHAT IS AFLATOXIN?
Aflatoxin is a naturally occurring fungus, which may pose health risks when present above a certain threshold. Aflatoxin is actually incredibly common and is often present in small amounts in many foods. There are regulations in place to make sure that it’s levels do not exceed a certain amount.

For more information, please watch this 9 minute informative video interview with Penny Campbell – The Director of the Health Control Unit - Health Department of South Africa.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9qFuXaU4tc



3. WHAT SHOULD I DO?
Stop eating it and return it to where you bought it from for a refund.



4. WHAT IS MY IMMEDIATE HEALTH RISK?
If you have already consumed the product, there is no need for undue alarm. “Aflatoxin in these levels is often only dangerous to humans through sustained exposure of around 20 years of significant consumption.” It can grow on many of the foods we know and love, like nuts, spices and dried fruit and is almost always present in our food system in small levels. Penny Campbell, Director of the Health Control Unit - Health Department of SA said, “There should be no concern for acute health risk.“
Links to quoted news source below:

 

5. WHAT ARE WAZOOGLES DOING?
We immediately contacted every single one of our retail partner directly and instructed them to remove all stock from shelves. We have a dedicated recall and customer support team working 24/7. We understand the trust placed in our products and do not take this responsibility lightly.

We are heartbroken that this happened and are working around the clock to rectify this issue as a matter of urgency. Transparency and openness are the most important things to us right now because we value your trust more than anything else.


6. WHICH BATCHES ARE AFFECTED?
Any batch numbers that begin with the numbers 21 - 51 are included in the recall.
Example: Batch: 21/23J - Batch: 51/23C.


7. ARE ANY OTHER WAZOOGLES PRODUCTS AFFECTED?
No. This incident is isolated to our peanut butter range only and does not affect any other Wazoogles products which are made in a completely separate facility.

Just to give you additional reassurance, we sent our Peanut Butterlicious Superfood Protein Blends and Peanut Butter & Jam Supernatural Oat Pots for lab testing and all results came back not only within SA standards but additionally within stringent European standards too.

This issue is related to the contract manufacturer that only made our peanut butters, they have nothing to do with any of our other products, which are still world class and we believe the best out there.


8. HOW DO I GET A REFUND?

  • WAZOOGLES.COM: Please click on this link for a refund: https://forms.gle/AKpGMtBTKeJJyJZRA - Proof of purchase required.
  • OTHER RETAILERS: Please return your stock to the store you bought it from for a refund (you don’t need your slip)

 

9. RETURNS

  • WAZOOGLES.COM: Product returns are to our Muizenberg address below. If you are unable to return your product, we will still honour your refund, provided you have your online proof of purchase.
  • OTHER RETAILERS: Please return your stock to the store you bought it from.


Wazoogles Superfood,
Unit 1, 1834 Capricorn Crescent,
Capricorn Park,
Muizenberg,
Cape Town,
South Africa,
7945.


10. WHY DO WE SHARE A MANUFACTURER WITH PICK N PAY?
You might be thinking, “Wow Wazoogles, I expected better from you guys.” The honest truth is Pick n Pay supported a really cool local African success story who were empowered through a fantastic program to have the opportunity to produce at scale for them.

However, as you can always expect from us, our ingredients are cleaner, we used no sugar, refined salt, stabilisers or emulsifiers and we worked for about 6 months on our specialised craft roasting process which is completely unique and creates an amazing product.


11. WHEN WILL WAZOOGLES PEANUT BUTTER BE BACK IN STOCK?
We’ve put our heart and soul into this delicious dark roast range. However, due to the situation, we have made a firm decision not to go back to this peanut butter manufacturer. And because of this, we’re not sure what our next move is… Our Best guess would be 3-4 months or sadly never.


12. WHY WE’RE BEING SO TRANSPARENT?
Transparency and openness are the most important things to us right now, because we value your trust more than anything else. This situation has been a reminder of the challenges that can arise in our mission to support local sustainable African farmers and empower local businesses.


13. OTHER QUESTIONS?
We are a small team and just aren’t able to promptly reply to 1000’s of customer queries. Hence, we have tried to answer absolutely all the questions you may have here. Should you have any other questions please email us on customerservice@wazoogles.com and allow 2-4 business days for a response. We are doing our absolute best here.

 

PLEASE NOTE: Our recall process will be ending on 7 April 2024. If you require refund before this time for you purchase on wazoogles.com please follow the link above. Thank you.

 

Read our public statement here.