UPDATE 2-U.S. halts Bunge Canada canola meal shipment with salmonella

(Adds Bunge comment, background on plant, FDA policy; market
activity)
By Rod Nickel
WINNIPEG, Manitoba, Jan 8 (Reuters) - The U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) halted a shipment of canola meal on Dec. 1
from a Bunge Ltd BG.N plant in Hamilton, Ontario, because it
appeared to contain salmonella bacteria, FDA records show.
Salmonella can cause food-borne illness in humans. However,
canola meal is mainly shipped to the United States for use in
animal feed, especially in the California dairy industry.
Shipments that were halted over salmonella concerns
interrupted trade between half a dozen Canadian canola meal
processing plants and U.S. buyers in 2009 and 2010. The FDA then
imposed shipping restrictions on the plants, but has since
softened its policy.
Bunge spokeswoman Deb Seidel said the company is shipping
Canadian canola meal as usual to U.S. buyers, with no
restrictions.
She said the FDA notified the company last month of the
contaminated shipment, which did not enter the United States.
The FDA has sampled subsequent shipments of Bunge canola meal,
and all tested negative for salmonella, Seidel said.
The FDA altered its policy for flagging animal feed
shipments with salmonella in 2013 to focus on specific strains
known to cause animal disease. It maintained zero tolerance for
salmonella in pet food because of greater risk to humans.
The FDA did not immediately comment.
A search of the FDA's online records for 2015 did not show
other refusals from Canadian canola plants.
Canada is the world's top exporter of canola, which is
crushed mainly for its oil.
The United States is by far Canada's biggest canola meal
export market, importing about 3 million tonnes in 2015, or 96
percent of the country's exports, according to Canadian
government data published by the Canola Council of Canada.
The Hamilton plant is one of five oilseed crushing plants in
Canada owned by Bunge. Last year, a fire interrupted canola and
soybean processing at the facility.
ICE Canada March canola futures RSH6 rose 0.9 percent
midday, along with U.S. soybeans. Bunge shares edged up 0.2
percent in New York.