Mango Board Updates PLU Codes for Recall

Following the voluntary recall of certain varieties of mangos, the National Mango Board (NMB) is working directly with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and others to provide necessary information to help determine the scope and source of illness that have led to the voluntary recalls.

As part of the FDA’s investigation, the agency has provided updates on its website that have been voluntarily recalled by suppliers and retailers. In particular, FDA has highlighted that the voluntary recall includes mangos sold between July 12 and Aug. 29, 2012, with PLU codes 4051, 4959, 4311 4584 and 3114.

“First and foremost, NMB’s priority is to help protect the health and safety of consumers in partnership with its member companies in the mango industry,” said William Watson, executive director of the Orlando, Fla.-based NMB. “As a national promotion and research board operating under the authority of U.S. Department of Agriculture, it is our responsibility to promote best practices among our member companies and to share factual information with the industry as a whole. As it relates to the voluntary recalls of mangos, we want to ensure that retailers and others have access to the specifics of PLU codes for mangos.”

As PLU codes for mangos are predominantly used to identify color (i.e.; red, green or yellow skin), NMB encourages all retailers to contact their suppliers for the most accurate information regarding whether the variety of mangos they have purchased have been affected by a voluntary recall. Consumers with questions about the recall can check the FDA’s website and ask the retailers for more information, too.

Mango PLU codes are organized by the predominant skin color rather than variety. For example, a large portion of fresh mango volume, including Tommy Atkins, Haden and Kent varieties, is assigned to the red mango codes. There are two codes for this red mango group, based on size: 4051 for size 12 and smaller, and 4959 for size 10 and larger.

The yellow mango codes are used most often for Ataulfo varieties, but they are available for Manila mangos as well.

As with the red varieties, there are two PLU codes for yellow mangos: 4312 for size 18 and smaller, and 4961 for size 16 and larger. The green mango PLU codes are used primarily for the Keitt mango variety, because of this mango cultivar’s greater size range, there are three codes: 4311 for size 12 and smaller, 4584 for size 8 to 10, and 3114 for size 7 and larger.

Earlier this year, the International Federation for Produce Standards (IFPS), the group responsible for setting PLU codes, approved PLU code 3621 for the Francis mango variety. This mango cultivar has been growing in volume and popularity over the past several years. In addition to the aforementioned PLU codes, there are four retailer-assigned mango PLU codes that are available and can be used by retailers for any whole mango item that does not fit into the above categorization – these are 4313, 4314, 4315 and 4316.

For more information about mango PLU codes, retailers are encouraged to contact their mango suppliers and visit NMB’s industry and retail section at mango.org.

(Information about the voluntary mango recall is based on FDA data as of Sept. 4, 2012.)