Thread: Bugs in King Arthur Flour

On Tue, 02 Oct 2012 09:57:16 -0600, Janet Bostwick wrote:

> Careful, you're on the slippery slope to Julie Land.
> The bug eggs are on the grain -- grain is grown in the outdoors where
> insects abound. Improper storage or transportation will cause the
> eggs to hatch. Write to KA and tell them about it. I'm sure they
> will make good your purchase.

What's considered improper storage for bags of flour?

-sw

On Tue, 2 Oct 2012 15:43:27 -0500, Sqwertz <[email protected]>
wrote:

>On Tue, 02 Oct 2012 09:57:16 -0600, Janet Bostwick wrote:
>
>> Careful, you're on the slippery slope to Julie Land.
>> The bug eggs are on the grain -- grain is grown in the outdoors where
>> insects abound. Improper storage or transportation will cause the
>> eggs to hatch. Write to KA and tell them about it. I'm sure they
>> will make good your purchase.
>
>What's considered improper storage for bags of flour?
>
>-sw
A bag of white flour should be good for 2 years from packing date
according to manufacturers. The flour needs to be kept cool and dry.
My personal opinion is not to store it in the sunlight. Not
necessarily refrigerated, but cool and not humid. If warm and humid
is an issue where you live, you need to buy small amounts that can be
refrigerated or frozen.
You do not have control of how the flour traveled to you or where it
was stored until you bought it. All you can do is copy down the
product number and batch number and notify the manufacturer. They are
interested, they don't want this image of their product. Return the
product to the store. You'll get your money back and probably some
sort of concession from the manufacturer.
It's disgusting, I know, to open a package and find bugs. I bought
50# of bird food once and when opened the contents were literally
writhing. yuck
Janet US

Sqwertz wrote:
> That was the first and last time I ever buy King Arthur flour. They
> were visible as soon as I opened the bag, 8 of them. I snuck a
> quarter cup to stiffen my wet dough, sifted through it, then threw the
> rest away. White unbleached all-purpose. Why pay more than double
> for flour with bugs? Gold Medal or the store brand for me from now
> on.
>
> -sw


All flour has insect eggs in it. Maybe the high price means a slower
turnover at the store and gave them a chance to hatch.

Just mix some poppyseeds with your flour and you won't have to think
about it. HTH :-)


Bob

"Janet Bostwick" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]..
> On Tue, 2 Oct 2012 15:43:27 -0500, Sqwertz <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
>>On Tue, 02 Oct 2012 09:57:16 -0600, Janet Bostwick wrote:
>>
>>> Careful, you're on the slippery slope to Julie Land.
>>> The bug eggs are on the grain -- grain is grown in the outdoors where
>>> insects abound. Improper storage or transportation will cause the
>>> eggs to hatch. Write to KA and tell them about it. I'm sure they
>>> will make good your purchase.
>>
>>What's considered improper storage for bags of flour?
>>
>>-sw
> A bag of white flour should be good for 2 years from packing date
> according to manufacturers. The flour needs to be kept cool and dry.
> My personal opinion is not to store it in the sunlight. Not
> necessarily refrigerated, but cool and not humid. If warm and humid
> is an issue where you live, you need to buy small amounts that can be
> refrigerated or frozen.
> You do not have control of how the flour traveled to you or where it
> was stored until you bought it. All you can do is copy down the
> product number and batch number and notify the manufacturer. They are
> interested, they don't want this image of their product. Return the
> product to the store. You'll get your money back and probably some
> sort of concession from the manufacturer.
> It's disgusting, I know, to open a package and find bugs. I bought
> 50# of bird food once and when opened the contents were literally
> writhing. yuck
> Janet US

Bird seed was the worst offender when I worked at K Mart. Some of it from
one supplier always had to be sent back.

Sqwertz wrote:
> That was the first and last time I ever buy King Arthur flour. They
> were visible as soon as I opened the bag, 8 of them. I snuck a
> quarter cup to stiffen my wet dough, sifted through it, then threw the
> rest away. White unbleached all-purpose. Why pay more than double
> for flour with bugs? Gold Medal or the store brand for me from now
> on.
>
> -sw

I always buy KA flour and have never seen a bug in it. (I hope
there will not be a first time for this!) I am wondering whether
that might occur more in certain regions.

--

zxcvbob <[email protected]> wrote:

> All flour has insect eggs in it. Maybe the high price
> means a slower turnover at the store and gave them a chance
> to hatch.



From my post a decade or more ago, Bisquick pancake mix, after
non-use for a year, upon opening, the mite eggs hatched!

They were swimming around like Olympic swimmers!!!

I got the impression that there's no avoiding them hatching in
storage if you don't cook up "mite based" pancakes or breads
before they hatch!

Unhatched, nobody ever notices, but the potential has been there
for some time.

For your own piece of mind, make me your King and Queen's
paranoid food taster!!!

Andy

In article <1kz2f7lmto0p3$.[email protected]>, [email protected]t
says...
>
> That was the first and last time I ever buy King Arthur flour. They
> were visible as soon as I opened the bag, 8 of them. I snuck a
> quarter cup to stiffen my wet dough, sifted through it, then threw the
> rest away. White unbleached all-purpose. Why pay more than double
> for flour with bugs? Gold Medal or the store brand for me from now
> on.
>
> -sw

I've never had a problem like that with King Arthur flour. I mostly use
their unbleached flour, bread flour and whole grain flour.