Posted: January 30th, 2011 - 4:01pm
Source: Patriot Ledger

QUINCY -- When Stop & Shop Supermarket Co. learned about potential contamination of 14 varieties of its Nature’s Promise bagged salads this week, it took a step it reserves for its highest-priority recalls.
The company used an automatic dialing system to reach thousands of customers by phone.
Although there have been no reports of illnesses related to the potential contamination, Stop & Shop considered the threat serious enough to notify customers by phone, spokeswoman Suzi Robinson said. The Quincy-based chain has used phone notifications in the past several years for class one recalls, which are those defined by the FDA as those whose consumption may lead to health problems or death, or products that are mislabeled.
Stop & Shop used phone numbers linked to shoppers’ loyalty cards to notify customers, in addition to putting out a press release, on Wednesday.
“While Stop & Shop continually investigates other ways to communicate with customers, we find that calling customers directly has been the most effective method,” Robinson said.