The Food Standards Agency of Scotland (FSAS) has announced that Macsween of Edinburgh Ltd has recalled a number of its products, including products manufactured for Lidl and Marks & Spencer, as a precautionary measure, because of concerns over the company’s procedures in place to control Clostridium botulinum.

FSAS reports that manufacturing controls that could potentially affect the safety of the products could not be demonstrated satisfactorily by the manufacturer. The issue relates to controlling factors to prevent the growth and toxin production of Clostridium botulinum. Botulinum toxin may cause a serious form of food poisoning called botulism and can be fatal.  A recall from customers is being carried out as a precautionary measure.

The recall concerns a wide variety of Haggis (Haggis is a savoury pudding containing sheep‘s pluck (heart, liver and lungs); minced with onionoatmealsuetspices, and salt, mixed with stock, traditionally encased in the animal’s stomach), as well as Black and White Pudding (White pudding is similar to black pudding, but does not include blood; both consists of pork meat and fat, suet, bread and oatmeal formed into a large sausage).