Talking Allergies

Chapman’s Ice Cream Discontinued from Dominion/A&P and Food Basics stores

According to a representative of Chapman’s Ice Cream products and A&P/Dominion Stores, their peanut/nut-free products are being discontinued in the Dominion A&P and Food Basics stores effective immediately.

A new line of ‘nut free’ ice cream products is being introduced by these stores under the Master Choice Brand. A date for this launch has not yet been communicated by the stores.

Response from A&P/Dominion Stores to a member of TAEG (Toronto Anaphylaxis Education Group) - March 27,2006



Response From Chapman’s Ice Cream to a TAEG Request on March 22.2006:




If you want to call to comment or complain, you can use the following toll-free numbers:
- 1-877-763-7374 for A&P/Dominion Customer Service
- 1-866-922-7427 for Food Basics Customer Service

I'm glad that these stores are offering an alternative product, but it would be nice to have some choice!

Karen

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Karen, proud Mom of
- DS1 (12 yrs): allergic to cashews, pistachios, Brazil nuts, potatoes, some legumes, some fish, pumpkin seeds; OAS
- DS2 (1o yrs): ana. to dairy, eggs, peanuts; asthma

I'm really disappointed in Dominion. What if all chains started doing that? Loblaws with President's Choice and No Name, etc. How annoying. Dominion has its Master Choice label alongside other products, so why are they removing Chapman's? I agree, it would be nice to have a choice. Master Choice seems to be the less expensive alternative anyway... they should give their customers a choice.

Master CHOICE... kind of ironic, isn't it?

I am also very disappointed. I called the A&P line and explained that allergic consumers build strong product loyalty and that I would drive to another grocery store to buy Chapmans rather than buy Masterchoice. I explained that when we choose a product we put a lot of trust in a company since the wrong choice could have serious consequences.

I also asked if the MC ice cream would be both nut and peanut free and if they would have a milk free product like the Chapman's sorbet. The woman I spoke with said she didn't know. She did say that they were tracking response to the decision. Maybe if everyone calls we can change their mind. Chapmans is available other places but our A&P carries the full variety of flavours and products. I wonder if MC will also produce safe popcicles and frozen treats.

The woman also said that Chapmans had a role in the decision - maybe a conflict about where their product would be displayed? Anyways I hope they reconsider. I want safe products readily available for my family and for schools.

Does anyone from Edmonton know where to buy the Chapmans Sorbet. By the way I requested Save On Foods to start bringing in Tofutti hard cheeses. I received a call saying they now haave them in their deli section. This is at the Mayfield Common store in Edmonton.
Stephanie

Stephanie,

We just recently went through this. Safeway was the only company that carried Chapmans. I was totally devastated and phoned Safeway and Chapmans to let them know. Chapmans was and is a wonderful company to deal with. When I told them of my situation they connected me with the local distribution centre. So that I would always be able to locate any of their products.

I will call chapmans thank you
Stephanie

I had contacted chapmans a few months ago regarding sorbet and milk allergies. They did not recommend it for the milk allergic, due to the fact that it is made in a facility that primarily manufactures ice cream and that the equiptment is shared.

This way a few months ago...so it is always possible that demand has encouraged chapmans to make the sorbet on seperate equiptment free of dairy. Does anyone have up to date info on the sobet? Have its manufacturing practices changed and is it now safe for the milk allergic?

People in my Ottawa support group got different answers about Chapman's sorbet and whether it was safe for dairy-allergic people or not -- which didn't give me a warm and fuzzy feeling.

One member, who is VERY good at grilling companies, was told that it was okay for those with milk allergies (during a phone call), while another received an email from the company saying that they could not guarantee that it was safe. This was at least 6-12 months ago. So for me, I had to say "not safe". An inconsistent message isn't good, in my opinion.

If someone calls about this, could you post your findings in the "Egg and dairy allergies" forum? Thanks!

K.

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Karen, proud Mom of
- DS1 (12 yrs): allergic to cashews, pistachios, Brazil nuts, potatoes, some legumes, some fish, pumpkin seeds; OAS
- DS2 (1o yrs): ana. to dairy, eggs, peanuts; asthma

That's just it... they're not. I didn't see the Master Choice ice cream at Dominion but the Equality one is only peanut free (with a warning under the list of ingredients that it's not nut free). So as far as I know, there are no peanut AND nut free ice creams at Dominion. Chapman's is both peanut and nut free.

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15-year-old son: peanuts, nuts, raw egg whites, asthmatic
Self: allergic rhinitis, fragrance/chemical sensitivities, oral allergy syndrome

Storm -- you answered my post from another thread here -- this is crazy! Anyone with peanut allergy knows that they must also avoid all tree nuts due to cross-contam. (are they even doing "peanut-free" testing? or are they just free of peanut?) Not to mention that those who have peanut allergy are 30-60% more likely to have or develop an allergy to tree nuts as well. You'd think that if you're creating a product specifically with a portion of the allergic population in mind, you'd do some research to ensure that you looked at every angle? I think that we all need to give them a call or email: http://www.freshobsessed.com/contactUs/ ... =contactUs

OK -- rant over -- now that I'm thinking more clearly -- do you think that they mean they are not "nut free" because they are not able to test for traces of tree nuts -- OR -- do they process icecream in their plant with tree nuts in it? This whole "peanut-free" "nut-free" terminology thing drives me crazy -- I think I'm going to give them a call.

I think that's a good idea.

Make sure you report back!

K.

_________________
Karen, proud Mom of
- DS1 (12 yrs): allergic to cashews, pistachios, Brazil nuts, potatoes, some legumes, some fish, pumpkin seeds; OAS
- DS2 (1o yrs): ana. to dairy, eggs, peanuts; asthma

I think a product that is supposedly peanut-free but not not free just confuses people more. My MIL for example would think it would be safe for my daughter because she wouldn't know that other nuts are cross-contaminated with peanuts.

I think I will write to the company and mention this. The more we write, hopefully the more they'll reconsider their labelling or bring Chapman back.

OK -- spoke to cust. serv. rep -- yes, Masterchoice and Equality Brand Ice cream "may contain" traces of nuts! He did say that by December 2006 - all MasterChoice and Equality brand ice cream will be "peanut / nut " free. I still asked to speak to in the necessary dept. to air my concerns and was told that he would forward my concerns to the "Corporate Branch and Quality Assurance" Departments on my behalf -- I explained that the peanut allergic need to stay away from any products that "may contain" traces of nuts as well due to the cross-contam. issue (not to mention those that are allergic to both peanuts and tree nuts) and that producing a "peanut-free" icecream for the peanut allergic that has a "may contain nuts" warning is pointless (I was nice about it though ) I still encourage others to call and explain the same -- maybe with many calls -- we'll see peanut / nut free icecream from the Dominion family of stores before December (or maybe they'll keep Chapman's until then?)

Thanks for the report, ethansmom!

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15-year-old son: peanuts, nuts, raw egg whites, asthmatic
Self: allergic rhinitis, fragrance/chemical sensitivities, oral allergy syndrome

I called back because I forgot to ask about the whole "peanut-free" declaration. The woman I spoke to this time said that they use one manufacturer for their ice cream, it is a brand new facility that does not have any peanuts on the premises -- she said that they test for peanut in all of their raw materials and the finished product (but, had to go and ask -- and I'm not sure I'm confident in her true understanding of it all...) She wasn't able to give me the name of their manufacturer (I'm not surprised). When I asked her about the plans for the "peanut/nut" free declaration in Dec. 2006 -- she said that wasn't for sure, they tell their employees something different every week -- she said that they'll know more in Sept. I again shared my concerns and she said this is a topic that they are very well aware of and as an employee aired her concerns (she's aunt to 3 peanut/nut allergic kids) but said she would again pass along my comments! Based on my two conversations -- I'm not confident in their product and understanding of allergies and I'd certainly have to reasses if and when they go peanut/nut free in the future.