Uncle John's apple cider deemed safe, sales resume

ST. JOHNS — Uncle John's Cider Mill in St. Johns will resume apple cider sales today after samples of cider produced between Oct. 22 and Oct. 27 tested clean for E. coli bacteria, according to a statement on the cider mill's Facebook page.

"Yesterday we were faced with the worst thing that has ever happened to us as a family business in 45 years. Our staff, friends and family all stepped up to help. They didn't have to, but they did," said the post, signed by the Beck Family. Uncle John's is operated by Mike Beck, his wife, Dede, and son-in-law John.

"Moving forward our focus will remain on consumer safety with some family fun mixed in."

The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development issued a consumer advisory Tuesday after a random sample of Uncle John's Old Fashioned Apple Cider tested positive for E. coli bacteria. The advisory affected 1,200 gallons of cider that was produced on Oct. 17.

The cider was sold at the cider mill from the retail cooler, packaged in various sized plastic jugs with a sell by date of Oct. 30, or served directly to consumers by the cup as cold cider, frozen cider slushes and hot cider, from Oct. 18 through Oct. 21.

Persons with questions or concerns regarding the cider may contact Uncle John's Cider Mill directly at cider@ujcidermill.com.

Contact Tom Thelen at (517) 377-1097 or tthelen@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @TomThelen_LSJ