You only need one contaminated ingredient to show the complexity and interconnectedness of our food supply. In the case of commercial bakery CSM Bakery Solutions in Georgia, one batch of peanut-contaminated flour led to prepared baked goods at clients nationwide that include Cinnabon, Safeway, Jewel, 7-Eleven, and Chick-fil-A.

Peanut allergies can be serious and potentially life-threatening, so even trace amounnts of peanut in a finished food product is an important food-safety issue. In this case, it looks like a batch of peanut-contaminated flour at one company that makes mixes for cookies, cakes, and other treats led to peanut-contaminated baked goods being sold across the country. We all learned a little more than we wanted to know about how the tasty prepared baked goods that we enjoy end up on the shelf.

For the peanut-allergic or generally curious, here are the affected products:

Recalls of cookies, cakes linked to peanut-tainted flour [Food Safety News]