Is Gorton's Frozen Fish Safe After a Food Recall?

On Friday February 29, 2008, Gorton's Frozen Fish (gortons.com) issued a product recall that involved 11.4 oz packages of 6 Crispy Battered Fish Fillets, as they may contain foreign material. This is one of a slew of product recalls consumers have been dealing with this year. When I heard about this latest recall, it felt personal. We have several packages of Gorton's fish in our freezer and have eaten several packages in the last few weeks. I am particularly concerned because most of my family is just getting over a terrible strain of the flu and have weakened immune systems. The recall does not include products that were shipped to my state, but still. As a mom, I worry. Is Gorton's frozen fish safe?

So, I headed off to the Internet to investigate. In the 1950's homemakers talked to neighbors across the white picket fence. In 2008, we get on line and dig for the truth.

I wondered if Gorton's had any sort of previous history with recalls. They are a large company and have been in business since 1849 (in fact that is part of their company logo, (Trust the Gorton's fisherman. Trusted since 1849.) I did a pretty extensive search and it seems that they are a fairly trustworthy company. I could not find any older complaints regarding product tampering or a previous recall of fish products.

Then I started wondering about what kind of quality standards they have in place. Not having a history of a lot of previous problems is great and all, but I am still thinking about the fish that I might serve my family.

According to their website, "Gorton's quality standards are more stringent that the government's voluntary USDC Seafood Inspection Program. While this government program requires 10 quality checkpoints, we require more than 50."

I'm starting to feel a little better about the fish and although I will probably wait a week or so to see what happens with the Crispy Battered Fish Fillet recall, I plan on eating Gorton's seafood again soon.

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